


Mr. Stark's Whore

by Arvari



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Aromantic Character, Loki Needs a Hug, M/M, Odin's A+ Parenting, Prostitution, Tony Being Tony, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-07
Updated: 2015-11-07
Packaged: 2018-04-30 11:05:05
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 25,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5161385
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arvari/pseuds/Arvari
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"So, do you want to have a little chat first, or do you want to go straight to the business at hand?" Loki raised his eyebrows and took another sip of the remnants of his coffee.<br/>"I..." Tony hesitated.<br/>"Mr. Stark," Loki smirked. "Have you never hired a whore before?"<br/>"I... I think the word whore is a bit offensive, isn't it?"<br/>"Not when I use it for myself. Besides, that's what I am. But if it makes you uncomfortable, I can call myself... A hooker? A prostitute? A social worker?"<br/>"Uhm," Tony observed.</p>
<p>(In other words, Loki's a prostitute and Tony wants to fuck. Loki expects to never hear from Mr. Stark again, but then he starts to get hired by him pretty often. And Tony quickly becomes Loki's favorite client. It's nice and perfectly uncomplicated, until Tony learns a few things from Loki's past...)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Might have heard of me?

**Author's Note:**

> The art for this story was done by the wonderful [Thäis](http://frostandironshipper.tumblr.com/). Thank you so much again! :)

He cursed right before picking up his phone.

"I think I said I'm not working today, Amora!" he said.

"And I think I said you are going to work whenever I want you to, because if you don't, you can go straight back to the streets, darling," he heard from the phone.

"That actually sounds quite wonderful," he smirked. "Come on, Amora. I have been working for the past four days, every night. I'm getting pretty sore. And I don't even need the money so bad this month. Why can't my ass get some rest?"

"Because I have a new client with some very specific requests."

"Requests," he sighed. "What is it?"

"Oh, nothing. He just wanted someone... special. A guy, preferably, tall, handsome..."

"I am sure there are many tall, handsome guys you could send him."

"Yes, but his other request was ' _not dull as a brick_ ', and frankly, you are the only one to meet that description."

"Fabulous," he murmured. "So when I am supposed to meet him? No, wait. Will I have time to at least get some coffee? Because I  _really_ don't want to fall asleep while he's on top of me. That would be very unprofessional or... something."

"You only have time for some coffee to go, I am afraid. You are meeting him at eight. The usual place, the usual room."

"At eight? But it's half past seven!"

"Is it really? Well, you should hurry up, then."

"You know what, Amora? Screw you. And I'm  _definitely_ not working tomorrow, you get it?!"

"Of course, Loki. Anything you say."

 

Twenty-seven minutes later, Loki was hurrying down the street to the usual hotel, a cup of coffee clasped firmly in his right hand.

He only hoped he would have enough time to drink it. Two minutes, yes, that should do. Maybe his client will be late so Loki won't have to burn his tongue. That would be bad, because he was pretty sure he was going to need his tongue in about twenty minutes.

He was nearly there, when the door of a car he was just passing opened right into his path. Loki managed to stop in his tracks and not run straight into it, but the next moment, a man got out of said car. Loki should have expected that, but he didn't. The collision was inevitable.

"Oh, shit," Loki cursed when the cup was nearly knocked out of his hand, probably almost half of the coffee spilling on his clothes and on the ground. "Are you blind or just an idiot?!"

The man straightened up (which didn't exactly have the desired effect, since he was still half a head shorter than Loki) and eyed the taller man over the rim of his sunglasses.

"Excuse me?" he said. "I think I have every right to open the door of  _my_ bloody car."

"Yes? And what about checking the sidewalk first, in case there was someone there?"

"Oh, come on," the man shrugged. "Nothing really happened."

"Except for the fact that my clothes are ruined and I have a meeting in this hotel in about a minute... Yeah, everything's just  _fine_ ."

"Right," said the man. "I will be nice and won't comment on the fact that the clothes probably didn't get much worse with the coffee-"

_"Excuse me_ ?!" Loki yelled.

"Just bill me, okay? Tony Stark. Might have heard of me?"

He closed the door of his car and started to walk away. He didn't even stop to hand his keys to the valet, he only threw them in the general direction of the young man.

"I know you're the bloody Tony Stark!" Loki growled and started after him. "But that's not an excuse to act like a dick!"

"What do you want, an apology?" Tony sighed. "Okay, I'm sorry. Satisfied?"

"That sounded  _very_ sincere," Loki smirked.

"Look, I think you said you had a meeting?" said Tony when they walked through the front door. "You'd better not keep her waiting. Or him. Whatever."

"Yes, I am sure your apology will be very helpful when I have to explain why-"

"Whatever," Tony said as he stopped by the reception desk. "Hi, keys to room 221, please."

"Oh, just  _fuck me_ ," Loki moaned.

"Sorry, I'm afraid I've got someone else for that tonight," Tony smirked. "No. Just put the keys on the desk and I'll take them, darling. I don't like to be handed things. Thanks."

The girl behind the desk nodded and put the keys down.

"Enjoy your stay, Mr. Stark," she said. "Hi, Loki."

"Hi, Sarah," Loki sighed.

Tony paused in surprise.

"Loki," he said. "That's... not a very usual name."

"It's not," Loki agreed and sipped from his cup. "I am afraid you really don't have anyone else for fucking tonight. Sorry. I'll... I'll just call Amora, she'll send you someone else. I'll tell her it was entirely my fault, of course. Excuse me for... Oh, even better. I must have left my phone at home, damn it..."

For the first time since they ran into each other, Tony really took a look at the taller man. He was handsome, all right. Tall, slim, but not too thin, great legs, nice, long fingers, a face on the verge of beautiful, bright green eyes, black wavy hair reaching his shoulders..

"Don't," Tony heard himself saying. "I am very willing to forget about our little... misunderstanding."

"Are you?" Loki blinked.

"Yeah," Tony said and grabbed the keys. "Come on."

"As you wish," Loki shrugged and followed him to the elevator.

 

 

"Just for the record," Tony said when he closed the hotel room door behind them. "The receptionist knows who you are and what you do for a living."

"She does," Loki admitted. "But don't worry. Amora makes sure all the receptionists are discreet. But you can make even more sure by slipping her a little tip when you leave."

"Right. Good," Tony nodded.

"So, do you want to have a little chat first, or do you want to go straight to the business at hand?" Loki raised his eyebrows and took another sip of the remnants of his coffee.

"I..." Tony hesitated.

"Mr. Stark," Loki smirked. "Have you never hired a whore before?"

"I... I think the word  _whore_ is a bit offensive, isn't it?"

"Not when I use it for myself. Besides, that's what I am. But if it makes  _you_ uncomfortable, I can call myself... A hooker? A prostitute? A social worker?"

"Uhm," Tony observed.

He hated to admit it, but he was at loss for words. And Loki seemed to be enjoying the fact.

"Maybe we could start with you telling me what would you like?" Loki suggested and sat down on the bed. "No, let me guess. I don't think you'd want something too wild, since it's your first time. So we can probably start with a blowjob. I am terribly good with my tongue."

"I've kind of noticed that."

"Yes..." Loki nodded and a wide smile appeared on his face. "Then... Hm, I say I could perhaps eat you out, open you up with my tongue and fingers and-"

"No. Hell no!" Tony shook his head.

"Oh. I'm sorry." Loki bit his lower lip and shrugged. "You seemed to me like the type who likes to bottom."

"Well, I'm  _not_ ," said Tony, perhaps a bit too quickly.

Loki narrowed his eyes.

"Okay," he said. "You're the paying customer, after all. But I would like to assure you that I am, too, very discreet, and you don't even have to tip me for that. I will not tell anyone about anything that happens in this room. Not even Amora. Whatever your preferences are, they're completely safe with me. I just want you to know that."

"Fine," Tony nodded.

"Also, my dick is pretty big. And like I said, I am very good with my tongue."

"You are incredible, Loki."

"Yes," the prostitute smiled. "It's your decision, Mr. Stark. Do you want to top or bottom?"

 

It turned out that Mr. Stark wanted to bottom, even though he didn't want anyone to know about it.

It also turned out that Mr. Stark had never been rimmed in his life, even though he'd always dreamed about it.

And it  _also_ turned out (while being rimmed) that Mr. Stark was quite a moaner, which was a trait that Loki always appreciated. It is always good to work with someone who will let you know just how much they're enjoying it. Yes, moaning always made the job way more fun.

And with Loki's tongue buried in his ass, Tony was about to stop moaning and go straight into unintelligible blabbering, or maybe just breathing hard, or maybe-

"Oh,  _God_ !" he whined. "Jesus fuckin'  _Christ_ , don't stop. Please, don't stop, please..."

Which, of course, ensured that Loki would do just that.

"Don't stop?" the prostitute purred. "Oh, and here I was, thinking I would prepare you properly and fuck you into the mattress. But if you don't want me to stop this..."

"Oh, in that case..." Tony took a deep breath and tried to hide the fact that Loki's words made his whole body tremble with anticipation. "Feel free to stop anytime you want."

"In that case," Loki muttered, "I should probably go get the lube and a condom."

"Yes. Yes, you definitely should. God. My God..."

"Interesting," Loki smirked. "I have never thought you would be so religious..."

 

_Religious_ seemed to be a bit of an understatement for what Tony really was. Before Loki even started fucking him in earnest, he had been called a god so many times he started to think there should definitely be a shrine build in his name somewhere. And when he really did start...

"Oh, Christ. Oh,  _yes_ ," was Tony Stark's reaction. "Jesus, I've missed this. I've missed this so much..."

He wrapped his arms around Loki's torso, a wide smile spreading on his lips, and moaned louder than before.

"Feel free to lose control, Mr. Stark," Loki grinned. "I won't judge you."

"Trust me, I will. And soon."

He dug his nails into the pale skin of Loki's back. This was good. This was incredible.

_He should have hired a prostitute a lot sooner_ .

When Loki hit his prostate, the last bit of Tony's self-control was gone and he was  _screaming_ .

Loki smirked.

 

He was a mess. He was a sweaty, shivering mess and he loved it. His heart was beating incredibly fast in his chest and his muscles had probably turned into jelly. He didn't want to move, didn't even try to. He just laid there, under Loki's hot (literally  _hot_ ) body and focused on starting to breathe regularly again. (Which was hard, harder than he'd ever thought.)

"Oh, my..." Loki murmured above him. "This was so good."

"It was," Tony croaked, his voice hoarse from the screaming. "Although I'm sure that it's somewhere in your work description to say that to all of your clients."

"It is," Loki laughed. "But I never say it unless I mean it. By the way, that didn't happen for the past, uhm... eight months, at least?"

"Wow. Such an honor."

"Yes. It is." Loki pushed himself upwards and grinned when he took a good look of Tony's body. "Oh, Mr. Stark, you do look lovely like this."

"Could you..." Tony coughed. "Could you maybe stop calling me  _Mr. Stark_ ? It is a little unsettling."

"I'm sorry. How am I supposed to call you? Sir? Master? My god?"

"Tony would be nice," the inventor suggested.

"Tony," Loki smirked. "Anthony Edward Stark."

"That would be me."

"Why do you call yourself  _Tony_ ? Anthony sounds much nicer. It has that... mature, distinguished feeling about it, whereas  _Tony_ is just... just an ordinary name."

"Oh, is that why you call yourself  _Loki_ ? Because it's not ordinary?"

"I don't call myself Loki. It's my name. It is also the name of the Norse god of mischief."

"Is it? What's your surname, then?"

"Smith."

Tony raised his eyebrows and sat up.

"Loki  _Smith_ ? Yeah, your first name definitely goes together with your surname. Man, what were your parents thinking, eh?"

"I would rather not talk about that," Loki muttered.

"Right. I understand, hippie parents or some other shit," Tony shrugged. "Sorry."

"It's all right," Loki smiled.

Tony bit his lower lip and his brow furrowed.

"Okay, so... What now?"

"My, you really haven't been with a professional before, eh?" Loki laughed. "Now you do what you do with your one night stands. You get up, take a shower and leave. Or I can take a shower and leave first. Or we can take a shower together and then leave together. Or we can fuck again and  _then_ take a shower. It's up to you."

"Suddenly you're a professional and not a whore?" Tony smirked. "But yeah, you know what? Taking a shower together sounds nice."

"I hoped you would choose that," said Loki. "Come on, then. Get up from that bed,  _Mr. Stark_ ."

"You are an annoying slut, aren't you?"

"Yes. And with recurring customers, that is exactly what I am paid for."

"Trust me, I won't become a recurring customer if you keep calling me Mr. Stark."

"Frankly, Mr. Stark, I didn't think you would. Shower?"

 

"Sir?"

"Yes, Jarvis?"

"Mr. Rhodes is requesting the access to your flat, sir."

"In other words, Rhodey came to visit me in my pretty new tower?"

"Yes, sir."

"Let him in, babe."

Not even a minute later, the elevator door opened and the colonel walked in, carefully looking around.

"Hi, honey," Tony grinned. "What do you say? Neat, isn't it?"

"A little bit... cold for my liking," the man shrugged. "But if you like it..."

"I do. And hey, check out the view. Wonderful, isn't it? I wasn't sure about Manhattan, you know, but it's... Yeah, I really like it."

"Yeah, but seriously, doesn't the whole project seem a little megalomaniac to you, Tony?"

"You checked the name on the tower? I think that explains everything. Drink?"

"I can't. Driving," Rhodey shook his head. "But you seem to be in a really good mood."

"Well, I am, actually," Tony nodded on his way to the bar. "I got laid last night. Gorgeous guy."

"Not what I needed to know. I must say I'm surprised, though. Weren't you afraid to hit the gay bars in New York, in case it would damage your playboy reputation?"

"I didn't hit the bars," Tony murmured. "I did what I said I would, Rhodey."

"You hired a  _prostitute_ ? Oh, man... Seriously? That's  _definitely_ not what I needed to know."

"Hey. Shut up. You're my friend. You are morally obliged to listen to my bullshit," Tony grinned. "But man, he was  _really_ gorgeous. Tall, lean and handsome, black hair, piercing green eyes, and that-"

"I know what you want to say, Tony, and I'm telling you,  _don't go there_ ."

Tony laughed and took a sip of his scotch.

"Can I at least tell you that it was fucking great?"

"Fucking great or a great fucking?"

"Both, Rhodey. Both. Actually, I think I might hire him again. In the future, I mean. Maybe near future. Depends on how horny I am."

"Are you trying to make me feel uncomfortable, Tony?"

"Is it working?"

"Nope. Sorry."

"Oh, never mind. Are you sure you wouldn't like that drink? You don't have to drive, I'll just call Happy and he will take you anywhere you want."

"I am absolutely sure, Tony."

 

Two days had passed and Tony found himself in front of the hotel again. This time, he careful not to open the door of his car before checking the sidewalk. Even though he had to admit he wouldn't mind opening it straight into Loki's way, just to piss the prostitute off. But Loki was nowhere to be seen.

Tony walked into the lobby, only to find the dark-haired man leaning against the reception desk.

"Yeah, I really hate it when she does that. Hello, I might use some rest?"

"Uhm, Loki," the receptionist, the same as the first time, said.

"Of course you never see her treating  _her sister_ like she treats me. Does she realize that I'm not a machine? And I am  _definitely_ not some cheap whore, either. I don't have to work everyday just to pay my rent, but apparently I have to work to buy Amora some new diamonds..."

"Loki."

"I mean, I have had two free days, but it would be nice to have more. Because today, I'm certainly not in the mood for-"

"Loki!"

"What?" the prostitute blinked.

"Oh, nothing," said Tony and smirked. "You're just ranting in front of your client. Hello, darling."

"I'm not your darling," Loki frowned.

"I wasn't talking to you."

"Hello, Mr. Stark," the receptionist smiled. "221, I suppose."

"You realize that you are here five minutes too early?"

"I'm glad to see you, too," Tony grinned and picked up the keys. "Come on, you little whore. It could have been much worse."

"I cannot quite imagine  _how_ ."

"He's just a bit dramatic," Tony told the receptionist.

She nodded.

"Yes. He is."

"Traitor," Loki muttered and took the keys from Tony's hand. "Let's go,  _Mr. Stark_ . I want to be through with it as soon as possible."

 

When Loki closed the door behind them and immediately started to take off his jacket, Tony bit his lower lip and cleared his throat.

"You know, if you really don't want to do this today, you don't have to. I want you to know that."

"Are you saying that because of what you heard downstairs?" Loki asked. "Come on, I just had to let off some steam. Don't worry about me, I am just  _fine_ . I just haven't slept too well yesterday, that's all."

"Why? Something bothering you?"

"I am sorry,  _Anthony_ , but I don't discuss my private life with my clients. Do you want to fuck or not?"

"Uhm, yeah, I do," said Tony. "But I wanted to... propose something, first."

"Not interested."

"How can you  _know_ you're not-"

"I only get two types of proposition. A  _Pretty Woman_ one and the  _Fifty Shades of Bullshit_ one. No, I won't go with you to any party, gala or any other social event, so you could fall in love with me and shower me with luxurious gifts. No, I won't become your sub and let you tie me up and beat me just because you think it's cool. If you want to become my sub, I might consider it, but I never submit to anyone. Have I made myself clear?"

"Perfectly," Tony nodded.

"So?"

"I just wanted to ask you if you would agree to spend a whole night with me if we don't tell Amora so you can keep all the extra money."

"Oh," Loki blinked. "I am sorry, I can't. I have to feed my cat."

"You know, if you're not interested, just say it, you don't need to invent an imaginary-"

"How much?"

"What?"

"The extra money. How much, Mr. Stark?"

"How much do you want?"

"Ten thousand dollars."

"Oh, come on, Loki. I checked, your usual price for the whole night is-"

"But you are not an usual client. And this is the price you certainly can afford to pay, Mr. Stark."

"Well, no one can say you can't grab the opportunity."

"Is that a yes?"

"What about your imaginary cat?"

"It's not imaginary," Loki smirked and reached into his pocket for his phone. "I do have a cat. Fortunately, I also have a neighbor who is willing to feed her for me. Give me a minute."

 

_I shouldn't be liking this so much_ , thought Tony as he was lying on his stomach and being slowly, so fucking slowly prepared by Loki.  _I should find someone normal. Someone who won't take sex as business and nothing more. Someone_ -

"Oh, God," he gasped when Loki pressed a finger against his prostate. "You're gonna kill me and I'm gonna pay you for that. Incredible."

"In that case, I should probably ask you to pay in advance," Loki laughed.

"Oh, no, just call an ambulance and then take the money from my wallet, no problem. But you could hurry up with this, because otherwise I might die from bore... Oh, forget it, no boredom, none at all."

"I am glad for that," Loki muttered, thrusting three of his fingers into the billionaire's body. "You know, Mr. Stark, you look really gorgeous like this. Your ruffled hair, your pink cheeks, your fingers digging into the pillow, your mouth slightly open, your breath all ragged..."

"God, I like it when you talk like this."

"The way your eager hole is trying to suck my fingers deeper, as deep as possible, how loose you are for me and for my cock..."

"Yeah, you're definitely gonna kill me before the night is over. Maybe even before it has a chance to  _start_ properly."

"Doesn't this seem proper enough to you, Mr. Stark? So tell me, what would you like me to do?"

"You bitch."

Loki was very obviously enjoying every second of it.

"Mr. Stark, I am afraid that I cannot provide my best services if you don't tell me what you want me to do."

Tony's brain was starting to lose its ability to form words, that good the fingers in his ass felt.

"Could you just... Just fucking  _fuck me_ ?" the billionaire growled.

"How?"

" _What_ ?!"

"How, Mr. Stark?"

"Now you're just trolling me, aren't you?"

"A little," Loki smirked. "But you  _must_ tell me. Would you like to ride me? Would you like to be lying on your back with your legs spread wide for me? Would you like to be on your side, or on all fours, or completely in the air with nothing but me supporting your weight? I could do that, too. I am stronger than you perhaps think I am. Or you could be pressed against the window, so the whole world could see the great Tony Stark, Iron Man, being fucked from behind like some cheap whore..."

"Oh, fuck, stop it, or I'm gonna come just from this."

"You think you could do it?" Loki grinned and his fingers suddenly sped up. "Let's try it, Mr. Stark. Can you come just from my fingers in your ass, the filthy things I am telling you and from rutting against the mattress like a teenage boy? Don't you think for a moment that I don't see it. Go on, Anthony, the bedding is the only thing that can help you come. I won't lay another finger on you. You come from this, or you don't come at all."

"Oh, Christ. Loki. Loki..."

"Have you never been fingered like this? It certainly seems that you haven't. What a shame, because I can see that your body  _loves it_ ."

"Loki, p-please."

The prostitute bent forward and pressed his chest against Tony's back, kissed the side of his neck and gently nibbled his earlobe.

"Please what, Anthony?" he whispered. "Please make me come? Please go faster? Please don't tell anyone what a little demanding  _slut_ I am? Please don't tell anyone I am gonna come without even being fucked? Please  _tell_ _me_ to come?"

"Oh, yes."

"Come, Anthony."

With a loud scream, Tony did.

_Now, what's so wrong with hiring a professional?_ his brain asked.

 

Two hours later, he had to admit to himself that there was no way he could last the whole night. He had already come three times, and every time he could have sworn he was about to have a heart attack. Loki was good. Loki was damn good. Amazing. The best fuck Tony had ever had. Undoubtedly.

Unfortunately, the prostitute was probably also aware of it  _and_ very smug about it, but Tony could live with that.

Loki was currently on his side next to Tony, gently kissing the man's neck and lazily caressing his stomach, never going even close to his chest, where the arc reactor was. Tony was incredibly glad for that, and for the fact that the prostitute didn't even ask what it was.

"So tell me, Mr. Stark," Loki murmured.

_Oh, well_ .

"Yeah?" said Tony, mentally preparing himself to make another remark about a fancy night light.

"Why did you come back?"

Tony blinked.

"Excuse me?"

"Have I really managed to fuck your brains out, or have your own screaming just damaged your hearing?" Loki frowned. "Why did you come back? To me, I mean."

"I thought that was quite obvious," Tony smirked. "You are really good at your job."

"Yes, but... I don't know. You seemed like the type who just wanted to know what it's like to be with a whore, nothing more. Not..."

"A loser who has to hire a whore because he doesn't know how to find a real fuck?"

"I wasn't going to say  _that_ ."

"Good. Because I  _know_ how to find someone. It's just... You're hot, and you're good in bed, and I have way too much money anyway, so why shouldn't I give some to you?"

"That's a philosophy I like," Loki grinned.

"Oh, I do believe that," Tony murmured and leaned his head forward, closer to Loki, closer to his lovely lips...

"Don't," Loki said and pulled away from the billionaire.

"What?" Tony frowned.

"I am sorry, I should have warned you but I assumed that since you didn't try to kiss me the first time..." Loki sighed. "Sorry. I just don't like being kissed on the mouth. That is my one unbreakable rule."

"Oh. Sorry. I won't do it again, then."

"Thank you," Loki smiled. "You are free to kiss me anywhere else you'd like, though."

"Oh, am I?" said Tony and licked his lips. "Okay then..."

Yes, he was definitely going to drop dead sometime during the night.


	2. A guy I used to know

"No, Pepper, I am absolutely, like more than hundred percent sure that you  _haven't_ told me about the  _fucking meeting_ !" Tony growled into the telephone. "No. No, you really  _haven't_ . ... Yes,  _now_ , you have. Really useful. ... Of course I'm not at home! ... Yes, Pepper, it was a good fuck. ... No, Pepper, there won't be any need for that, unless our biology teacher lied to us about needing a mummy and a daddy to make a baby. Though I really hope that they lied to me in the church where they told me you can burn in hell if you try to make a baby with another daddy. ... No, Pepper, it was a fucking elephant. Of course it was a guy! ... I'm sorry, but are you praying for my soul already? ... What the fuck do you mean by  _a hopeless case_ ?! And you, stop laughing, there is a special place in hell reserved for whores like you, Lolita!"

"Lolita," Loki murmured and licked his lips. "Light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta..."

"This shouldn't sound that fucking sexy," sighed Tony. "What? Yes, Pepper, of course he's fucking legal! He's at least twenty-four or something."

"Twenty-five, actually."

"Twenty-five!" Tony repeated. "Totally legal. What do you think I am, an idiot? No, wait, don't answer that, I know exactly what you'd say."

"Yes, you are?" Loki suggested.

"Shut up, totally legal whore," Tony smirked. "No, no, Pepper, I  _can_ call him a whore, he  _is_ a whore. He calls  _himself_ a whore! ... Yes, Pepper, I will not call him a whore anymore. ... Well, yes, I meant like a professional whore. Prostitute. Whatever. ... You know, if you keep shouting at me, I will definitely miss the meeting! ... Thank you. Yes, you can shout at me when you see me. Bye, Pepper. I'll be back in Stark Tower... well, as soon as I can. ... Yes. Yes. Bye. ... I said  _bye_ , Pepper. ... Yeah. Bye."

He ended the call and sighed.

"Are you in trouble for sleeping with a whore?" asked Loki.

"No, no, no, not a whore. A prostitute," said Tony. "It's unacceptable to call you a whore, and it doesn't matter if you want it or not. If, for example, you would like to be called a queer-"

"Oh, I  _love_ that word," Loki grinned. "Please, call me a queer."

"Sorry, also unacceptable."

"And what is acceptable? Calling me a bisexual prostitute?  _Boring_ , Anthony."

"Yeah. Maybe. Look, I would love to stay and talk to you, but you probably gotta go give your cat a breakfast and I need to get back to Stark Tower ASAP, because I need to take a shower before a very important meeting I knew nothing about ten minutes ago."

"And that, on the phone... was Pepper Potts?" asked Loki.

"It was. Why?" Tony frowned.

"I was just wondering," Loki shrugged. "Weren't you two... together or something?"

"We were," Tony nodded. "For about... I don't know, three months? But it didn't work out in the end. It was a bit too intense for her. Iron Man is a terrible boyfriend, I have to admit. And even though there was mutual attraction, there was no... no real love, you know what I mean?"

"Not exactly, no," Loki shook his head.

"Doesn't matter. We're not together anymore, but she stayed in the company as my CEO. She's incredibly good at that, I couldn't afford to lose her. A significant raise and a flat in Stark Tower made her understand that. We're back to being friends. Well, when she doesn't want to kill me for doing what I'm not supposed to do."

"Like fucking bisexual male prostitutes?"

"Like being  _fucked by_ bisexual male prostitutes," Tony winked. "By the way... Would you mind if I hired you again?"

"For another ten thousand dollars? Not at all," Loki smiled. "Speaking of which..."

"You want to get paid. Right," Tony nodded and reached for his wallet. "You know what? I don't think I should give you ten thousand dollars. Just for the first orgasm, you deserve at least fifteen."

"You really think you have way too much money, don't you?"

"Of course," Tony grinned, handing Loki the bills.

"Were you expecting me to ask for so much?" asked Loki.

"Frankly, yes," Tony replied and kissed his cheek. "At least the next time that bitch Amora wants you to work when you don't feel like it, you can tell her to fuck off."

 

During the meeting, Tony nearly fell asleep. Three times. Of course, it wasn't very unusual for him to doze off during the unfortunately necessary business appointments, but this was a little too much, even for him. Especially because he lightly snored once, and was woken up by a stiletto heel digging into his left foot, which wasn't exactly pleasant.

As he was leaving the meeting room, he just wasn't able to shake off the feeling that this wasn't over yet. The feeling was, of course, confirmed when Pepper clasped his shoulder and pushed him, gently but firmly, in the direction of her office.

"Oh, baby, really?" said Tony. "Right now?"

"Keep walking, boss, or I'm going to have to find a new job," said Pepper.

"Excuse me, am I being kidnapped? Because I'm not really a fan of being kidnapped."

"I swear, Tony, I have never met anyone as annoying as you."

"Was that a compliment?"

She pushed him into the office and shut the door behind them.

"Seriously, Tony, a  _whore_ ?!"

"Wait a moment," he frowned. "I thought that term was unacceptable."

"Tony Stark-"

"Calm down, darling. Just tell me what pisses you off the most. The fact that I was falling asleep during the meeting, the fact that I spent the night having sex or the fact that the prostitute might want to sell the story? Because I always fall asleep, having sex is good for my health and he won't sell the story."

"You have an answer for everything, don't you?"

"Probably, yeah."

"Good. So tell me why."

"Why... what?" Tony blinked.

"Why a prostitute?"

"Uhm," said Tony. "Okay, I'll tell you what I told Rhodey-"

"You told Rhodey? When did you have a time to tell Rhodey? Oh, it wasn't your first time with that guy last night, was it?"

"My second time," Tony shrugged. "Look, I just wanted to... I don't know. I wanted a guy, and I didn't want to risk  _accidentally_ coming out just because some guy from a gay club decides to boast that he fucked Tony Stark, okay? I thought... Well, if you pay someone, that should keep their mouth shut, right? In Malibu, I knew a few guys who stayed quiet for an occasional little gift, but it's not so easy here."

"Tony," Pepper sighed. "Why don't you just finally come out,  _oficially_ ? It would make your life so much easier."

"Not gonna happen."

"But why, Tony?" she asked. "When you are talking to me, you are almost too open about it. It's the same with Rhodey. Why-"

"I just don't want the whole world to know, okay?" said Tony. "I don't know everyone discussing my sex life,  _again_ . It's different when they talk about the models I've shagged, I'm used to that, but me being bi? No, sorry, I'm not ready for that shitstorm."

"Are you ashamed of yourself, Tony?"

"Are you even listening to me, Pepper? I'm most definitely not," he growled.

"It seems to me that you are."

"Oh, really? I spent last night being fucked and fucked and fucked again by a gorgeous guy. I spent the night screaming and begging for more. I spent the night-"

"Are you trying to convince me or yourself?"

Tony took a deep breath and shook his head.

"Have you finished?"

"Tony, don't you-"

"Have you finished, Pepper?"

"Yes," she sighed. "Yes, I have."

"Good. Are there more meetings I need to attend today?"

"No."

"Fantastic. I'll be in my bed, sleeping. Wake me up only if the tower is on fire or there's an alien invasion or some bullshit like that. We clear?"

"Yes, Tony."

"Good night, Pepper. Day. Afternoon. Whatever."

He slammed the door behind himself.

 

When Loki walked into the hotel lobby, Tony was already there, tapping his foot, impatiently waiting for him.

"Anthony?" the prostitute blinked. "You really don't know what to do with your money, do you?"

"Sorry, I'm not in the mood for talking today," Tony growled and grabbed his hand. "Just come with me."

"You know, in most cases, that is just a terrible misconception created by Hollywood... Oh, you meant come with you upstairs."

"I said not in the mood, Loki."

"So you are expecting me to just shut up, go to our room, fuck your brains out and leave?"

"That's the general idea, yeah."

"No."

"What do you mean, 'no'?"

"I mean no, surprisingly. Sex is not a way to escape from problems, Anthony."

"Yes, it is. And stop calling me Anthony."

"I will not-"

"Fine. So I'll just go and find a whore without your morals. Shouldn't be a problem."

"Stop," Loki sighed and rolled his eyes. "Fine. I will do it."

"See? That's more like it. Come on."

 

He was lying on his stomach, panting, trembling. His legs had given up right in the middle of his orgasm, which meant about two minutes ago, and he still wasn't sure when he was going to be able to use them again. If he was ever going to be able to use them again.

"So, are you satisfied, Mr. Stark?"

He could practically hear the smirk.

"Loki..." he murmured.

"I'm sorry, I know that I am not supposed to be talking. I am going to get dressed and leave."

"Oh, stop it," Tony sighed and rolled over, so he was lying on his back. "I'm sorry, okay? I was pissed off."

"Were you? I didn't notice."

"Yeah, I know, I completely deserve it. I always completely deserve it. No one deserves it more than I do."

"Will you finally tell me what's wrong?"

"Argument with Pepper," the billionaire sighed. "Because of you. And because I refuse to come out and admit that I'm bi."

"And why should any of that matter to her?" Loki frowned.

"I don't know. I think she only wants what's best for me," said Tony. "And yeah, it would probably be better to be out, because right now, I always worry about people finding out about me, but... I don't want to do it. Not... publicly."

"I know what you mean," Loki nodded.

"You do?"

"Of course that I do. I mean... If I were famous like you, I wouldn't want people discussing my sexual orientation, either. It's not a big deal, of course, but it would be annoying."

"Thanks," Tony smiled. "You're probably the first person who hasn't accused me of being ashamed of myself."

"You don't have a slightest idea what that word means," Loki grinned. "You are always so open about your needs and wishes..."

Tony grabbed Loki's hand and just held it.

"Thank you. I mean it. And I'm really sorry for being an asshole earlier."

"I suppose I will survive that," Loki winked.

"Yeah, you probably can't die from me being a dick. At least I haven't heard about anyone who did. And there are many possible victims. More than I can count. I just can't be a nice guy..."

"Really? I haven't noticed that, either."

"Incredible, that's what you are."

"Excuse me? You are flying around the world in a shiny metal suit and fighting the bad guys, and  _I_ am incredible?"

"I promise I won't call you again for at least a few days, okay? At least unless I absolutely need to see you. Hell, I have no idea why I called you today. It's partially  _your_ fault that I feel this bad. If you weren't so bloody good in bed..."

"You didn't call me, you called Amora," Loki smirked. "And by the way, I was about to, well, tell her to fuck off, as you so eloquently put it. I'm glad I didn't."

"So am I. I think I would have gone crazy otherwise," the billionaire sighed. "Oh, okay, I probably should go. I have some work to do, on the suit and... you know, all that engineering bullshit."

"No," Loki muttered and shook his head, his face turning serious. "I'm sorry, I don't know... much about that."

"Never mind," said Tony. He didn't notice the change in Loki's features. "Perhaps I'll explain some of it to you, one day. Would you like that, eh?"

Loki managed a slight smile.

"Yes, I think I would. Thank you, Anthony."

 

To Loki's surprise, Tony kept his promise about not seeing Loki for a few days. To tell the truth, Loki didn't hear from the billionaire for several  _weeks_ . He almost became convinced that all of it was just a really strange dream. Or that, perhaps, Tony realized that Pepper was right and fucking a prostitute wasn't exactly a good thing for his reputation.

Not that Loki cared too much. Yes, it was very refreshing to have a male client who wanted to be fucked, but, frankly, it wasn't anything he wouldn't be able to live without.

When he was about to accept the fact that he would never see the annoying man again, he found him waiting in the hotel lobby.

"Hi, Lolita," the billionaire grinned.

"Mr. Stark," Loki nodded. "I should have known it would be you when I was, once again, given only half an hour to get here."

"Yeah, sorry about that," Tony shrugged. "I've had so much work these past few weeks, board meetings and business trips and other bullshit I apparently have to attend... I swear Pepper's doing it on purpose, half of the time no one would even notice if I wasn't there! And then there was that attack of some shitty new villain, and they found Captain America and... Sorry, I  _really_ need to let off some steam. Those last few weeks were pretty hard."

"Do you know what you need, Anthony?" Loki smiled.

"Oh, yes, that's why I wanted to see you."

"Idiot," Loki smirked and headed for the elevator. "I was talking about a nice, long relaxation massage."

"I'm afraid I don't have the time for anything other than a quick fuck," Tony sighed. "I have some stupid gala to attend tonight. Don't worry, I'm not inviting you."

"Thank you. I appreciate that," said Loki. "All right, as you wish. A quick fuck."

"Don't worry, I'll call you again very, very soon. How about earning another ten thousand dollars, eh?"

"Mr. Stark, I have a feeling that you will become my favorite client..."

 

After that, they started to see each other almost regularly. Tony would hire Loki on most Sundays (because even Pepper wasn't able to invent plans for him for Sundays), and let the prostitute fuck his brains out. It was a mutually beneficial arrangement. For Loki, it meant money. For Tony, it meant an easy way to relieve stress.

It worked pretty great for about two months.

Tony didn't bother explaining it to Pepper. Her disapproval was obvious just from the way his personal organizer was filling with unnecessary business appointments.

"You know why I made you a CEO?" he asked her one afternoon. "So I don't have to bother with this shit."

"This  _shit_ is important, Tony."

"Doesn't seem too important to me. Suppliers, problems with employees, new clients... Nope, this is  _your_ job, Pepper, not mine. I've got other things to do, you know?"

"Like meeting your prostitute?"

"No, like inviting new stuff. Clean energy, remember? Lots of work to do on that. I need to make the arc reactor smaller and more affordable for-"

"We have scientists for this, Tony."

"Yeah, but frankly, those scientists are not me," Tony smirked. "Those guys are useful for some things, but the reactor... They can't even fully understand that, Pepper, how could they make it smaller? And besides, I need that. The paperwork is driving me  _insane_ . I want to work, with my hands, I want to feel the metal between my fingers, I want to think about something complicated, I want to  _solve problems_ . I don't want to sit here and do the work  _you_ are supposed to do, because if I'm doing it, it basically means I don't need you. But I do, I need my friend Pepper, who happens to be my CEO Pepper at the same time and... See? That's what you do to me. I'm going mad. My brain's going into an overload. Can't you hear the beeping? Beep. Beep. Beep."

"Are you trying to drive me crazy in return?"

"Maybe."

He looked at the pages of his personal organizer again and frowned.

"Tony?" said Pepper. "What's wrong?"

"Sorry, it's twenty-fifth today?"

"Uhm, yes. Why?"

"Nothing. Just... Look, I'm really not in the mood for this shit today. I'm going home. I mean, upstairs. My penthouse. Yeah..."

"Tony, what's wrong with you?"

"I told you, it's nothing." He closed his personal organizer and stood up. "But I'll be with my whore tonight. Just so you know."

 

Loki liked to think (and say) that he was a professional. He didn't only mean that he was earning money by selling his body, no. He meant that he enjoyed his, well, job, and was terribly good at it. He was able to guess what his clients preferred and wanted, and he was able to notice even the slightest change in the mood of his  _recurring_ clients. He knew when they wanted the sex to be more intimate and when they just wanted a quick and rough fuck.

But when he saw Tony that day, he didn't have the slightest idea what the billionaire might want from him. He was distant and silent and didn't respond to Loki's usual flirting. It was as if he didn't want the sex  _at all_ .

Which was kind of confirmed when, closing the door behind them, he sighed and said:

"Lolita? You think we might talk for a bit, first?"

"Well, of course that we can," Loki nodded. "Is there anything wrong?"

"No. Well, yes. But it's not your fault."

Tony sat on the bed and sighed.

"Anthony," Loki muttered, standing before him. "If you want to talk, then talk."

Tony looked up and into Loki's green eyes.

"You know why I keep coming back to you?" he asked.

"Because I said that you won't," Loki shrugged. "And because I can make you scream. And because I'm hot. And intelligent."

"And so modest, too."

"Exactly," Loki nodded and began to slowly massage Tony's scalp. "Is there another reason?"

"Sort of."

Tony closed his eyes and stayed quiet for several long seconds.

"I'm waiting," Loki finally said.

"You remind me of a guy I used to know. Well, sort of know. Oh, damn, okay, I've seen him a few times, fucked him once. He committed suicide a few years back. I don't remember the  _year_ , fuck. I just remember the date."

Loki was glad that the billionaire's eyes were closed and the man didn't see his frown.

"Let me guess. Today?"

"Yeah..." Tony sighed. "He was nineteen, I think. Eighteen or nineteen. Hell, I think it was five years ago, but I'm not sure. He... He cut his wrists. No one knows why."

"And you still remember him? After all these years?"

"Yeah. I do," Tony nodded.

"What was his name?"

Tony laughed.

"Oh, well. This is kind of weird, but... Loki. Loki Odinson. Son of one... one of our suppliers, I think. A businessman. Odin Borson, might have heard of him?"

"No," Loki shook his head. "Definitely not."

"Yeah, their family comes from Iceland, that's the reason for the weird names. Yeah. Loki. Really weird. And he had those... piercing green eyes, just as you do. He was a blonde, but... God, if he wasn't dead, I could swear that you're him, all grown up. There are even some... similar facial features."

"Only because you wish to see them, Anthony. But I don't understand why you should still think about him. You said you only fucked him once. You barely knew him."

"Because... It happened at a party about six moths before the suicide, you know? And... I was an adult, obviously. In my early thirties. And he was about eighteen. And he decided that he  _wanted_ me to fuck him. He just wouldn't leave me alone. He followed me around, he annoyed the hell out of me, until I grabbed him and dragged him into an empty bedroom, like a fucking teenager. And I did what he wanted. You should have seen him. He was so  _feral_ , so incredible. He was moaning and screaming and digging his nails into my back, he even bit me once. And he was getting off on pain. Because when I bit him back, he became even wilder, and when I grabbed him by the neck... Christ. He went almost mad."

A shiver ran down Loki's spine.

"So what? It doesn't sound like he committed suicide because of you."

"No. No, but when we finished, we talked for a while. And he was so intelligent, he wanted to go to MIT, study engineering, be a scientist, you know? And he... He gave me his number, told me to call him if I wanted to meet again."

"But you never did," Loki muttered.

"I never did. And I just keep thinking, what if I did? We could have started dating. Or at least I could have been there for him when he wanted to give up. He... he could have been alive."

"I don't think he would be alive, Anthony," Loki shook his head.

"How can you know?"

"I don't. I just think there was a reason for... what happened. And there are things that you cannot change, no matter how hard you try."

"Yeah, but-"

"Anthony," said Loki and sat on the bed next to Tony. "Would you like to fuck him again?"

"What?" Tony blinked. "What do you-"

"I mean... You said that I remind you of him. Fine. If you want, I can pretend that I'm he. And you can fuck him just like you fucked him at the party."

"That is seriously creepy, Lolita."

"But you are considering it."

"And that is even creepier."

The prostitute smiled.

"That Loki sounds like a really wild creature. I am absolutely sure that he wouldn't mind."

"Well, you're the expert here. But yeah, I... I think he really wouldn't."

"Good," Loki nodded. "So what did he say, eh? How did he try to lure you into the bed with him?  _Oh, Mr. Stark, please. I promise you you will enjoy it. And my father will never know._ "

"Oh, shut up, will you? You're more annoying than a jobless model," Tony smirked. He was sure that he had said something similar to that other Loki, all those years ago.

"Once. Just  _once_ . Then I'll leave you alone. Please, please, please?"

"Are you trying to drive me insane?"

"No. I'll be driving you insane in the bedroom."

"Sure? Because I really think you're doing it now."

"You haven't seen anything, Mr. Stark," said Loki with one of his irresistible smiles and Tony gave up.

He grabbed the back of Loki's head and, remembering the prostitute didn't like to be kissed on the mouth, pressed his lips against his long neck. He wasn't going to be gentle. He wasn't in the mood for gentle.

He bit the pale skin and Loki gasped. It seemed that he was getting off on pain, too. Oh, Tony was going to enjoy this a lot.

"Oh, yes," Loki murmured. "Come on. Teach me a lesson, old man. Fuck me until I can't even remember how to walk."

The moment the words found their way into Tony's brain, his whole body immediately tensed. He stopped kissing Loki's neck and pulled away, his eyes wide and full of disbelief.

"Loki," he croaked. " _Loki_ ."

The prostitute went a bit paler than usual, realizing a mistake he'd just made. He'd got so lost in the memory that he...

"Yes?" he said with a raise of his right eyebrow. "I think we have estimated a long time ago that was my-"

He was silenced by a hard slap across his face.

"Your name's Loki  _Odinson_ , you little fuck!" Tony growled.

"Loki  _Smith_ ," the prostitute sighed. "I changed it."

"You're supposed to be fucking dead! You committed suicide, you... You committed suicide!"

"Yes, you have mentioned that."

"I can't believe it. You... You  _are_ Loki-"

"If you say the name of that asshole again, I am going to throw you out of the window, Stark, I  _swear_ ."

"But it  _is_ you. Isn't it?"

"It is."

"But... But how? Loki..."

"Do you really want to have that conversation?"

"I spent five years-"

"Six, actually."

"-six years asking myself if I could have saved you, for fuck's sake. Yes, I really want to have that conversation!"

"All right. But I don't suppose that either one of us will be in the mood for sex when it's over."

"I'm  _already_ not in the mood for sex."

"There's no reason to talk here, then. I know a nice little café just around the corner."

 

They walked to the café in silence. They placed their orders (it seemed a little unnerving to Tony that they both went for a perfectly ordinary cappuccino, and neither of them added sugar into his drink), but still hadn't said a word to each other. And Tony didn't want to be the one to start the conversation, but...

"Okay, talk," he finally said. "How the fuck are you alive?"

"It's really not so easy to explain," Loki sighed.

"Oh, don't worry, I've got plenty of time."

"Fine. As you wish. First things first, I am not Odin's biological son. I am adopted. I found out about two weeks before my, uhm... suicide. You know Thor, my... Odin's real son? Blonde, football player..."

"Yeah," Tony nodded.

"Well, he's two years older than me. He was back home from his university for a weekend. Our parents were away and I... I really wanted to take a ride in one of Odin's treasured old cars. I convinced Thor to come with me. He was driving and... There was an accident, you don't need to know the details. It was nothing serious, we were both relatively fine, but I had some cuts on my left forearm and they just wouldn't stop bleeding. I had to go to the hospital. There I found out that I had mild hemophilia. For some reason, my parents neglected to inform me about that."

"You have..."

"Oh, don't you start. I said  _mild_ , and I mean  _very_ mild. I'm fine. Most of the time, I don't even know about it. Yes, sometimes I get really ugly bruises, but it's nothing. It's much easier to keep it under control when I  _know_ about it. The thing is, I have it, Thor doesn't. Yes, yes, I know, it's inherited from the mother, and there's only a fifty percent chance for a child to get it, but... I don't know," he muttered, staring at his left forearm. "I needed a transfusion, but Thor has got a different blood type. He's got A, I've got 0. And then, something in my head just... clicked. I was never like Thor, or like Odin himself. I'm not strong and bulky, I don't care about business or sport, I just never fit into the family. And when I realized this, I realized what an  _idiot_ I'd been, all of my life. Well, since I learned about genetics at school, at least."

"What?" Tony blinked. "Why?"

"This," said Loki and pointed at his hair. "At the hotel, you said that Loki was a blonde. Well, he wasn't. This is my natural hair color. Black. But the rest of my  _former_ family is blond. Genetically impossible. Yeah. So when Odin came back and he was done yelling at us, I asked him about it. And well, you know what? Apparently, I am a bastard son of his business rival. Odin adopted me to use me against him, make me destroy his company. I don't know  _how_ did he want to do that, my biological father never even acknowledged me as his son. There was no way for me to get into his company. But I guess that it doesn't matter anymore. My biological father is dead. And I'm not a pawn in Odin's private chess game anymore."

"Oh, fuck," Tony muttered. "That's horrible. I'm really sorry, Loki..."

"There's no need," Loki smirked. "I bet you want to know how I ended up  _dead_ . Well, after the big revelation, Odin gave me a choice. I could become his, well, his little pet. An accountant or something like that. Prove myself useful to the company."

"Let me guess, it would involve some creativity with the accountancy?"

"Exactly," Loki nodded. "The other choice was to leave. And I must admit that for several days, I considered the first choice. I really did. You know, all my life, I had been trying to prove myself worthy of Odin's love. I wanted to be a good son. I wanted him to at least  _like_ me, if not  _love_ me. Yes, I was ready to do it, but... And, you know, right after the accident, Odin had a terrible argument with Thor, and it ended up with him throwing Thor out, and I thought that this, this is my chance to at least become my brother's  _equal_ . But then Thor came back, well, I think his friends dragged him back, and  _we_ had a terrible fight. I ended up so fucking  _bruised_ and Odin sided with Thor and I... I realized that I couldn't do what Odin wanted from me. And so... I packed my backpack and left. Two days later, I found out that I had apparently killed myself. What a tragedy."

"So are you telling me that... Odin killed you, right?"

"In the figurative sense of the word," Loki nodded.

"Oh,  _fuck_ ," Tony whispered. "I... I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything, Anthony," Loki shook his head.

"And what then? How did you become..."

"A whore?" Loki laughed. "That was pretty easy. I didn't leave completely moneyless, of course. Mother slipped me a few hundred dollars when Odin wasn't looking. I stayed in cheap motels, and I tried to earn some money. I learned several things about myself. I am a terrible barista, for example. And I am an even worse waiter. And shop assistant. I tried, I tried  _so hard_ , but I failed every single time. I was running out of money. So I decided to try... walking the streets. I managed on my own for about a year, but it was a terrible life. I was really just a cheap whore back then. I only barely earned enough money to survive in a tiny flat. Then I met Amora. She was just thinking about starting her own business. A few weeks later, she did, and she, well,  _employed_ me, and here I am. In a relatively nice flat, with enough money to buy some books and clothes, too, and not just the cheapest food around. A whore, yeah, but... You  _know_ that I like my job, don't you?"

"Oh, yes, I do," Tony nodded. "That's why I won't tell you that I'm sorry about  _that_ ."

"Thank you," Loki smiled.

"But why didn't you tell me who you were?" asked Tony. "You recognized me. Why didn't you say ' _hey, it's me, it's Loki, that annoying teenager_ '?"

"Because you didn't recognize  _me_ . And frankly, I really thought that you had already forgotten about the party and our fuck. I thought I wasn't important to you. It's strange to imagine that you  _mourned_ me. And flattering, somehow."

"I didn't mourn you. I just blamed myself for what happened to you."

"Still flattering," Loki smiled. "Now, Mr. Stark... Will you want to keep on seeing me, knowing who I am?"

"Oh, yes, of course," Tony nodded. "In fact, the next time, I think I'd really like to top. And... You know, do all those things I didn't get to do tonight."

"I will look forward to it," Loki grinned, then reached for his wallet and took out a calling card. "This is just so you don't have to speak to Amora every time you want to fuck."

"Your private number? Awww, that's cute. Am I allowed to use it even when I don't want to discuss business? I mean, can I... text you or something?"

"Don't make me regret it giving it to you, Stark."

"Right. I'll take that as a no..."


	3. Nothing to worry about

Tony was sitting in his office armchair and praying for it to just swallow him whole. He had never seen Pepper so mad. She looked like she was completely ready to kill him and spend the rest of her life in jail. Or on the run, maybe. Or running the whole company like nothing happened, because seriously, who would ever suspect someone like Pepper when there was a long list of  _other_ people who wanted to see Tony Stark dead?

"Pepper. Pepper, listen to me-" he tried for about a hundredth time.

"I am  _not_ going to listen to you! Are you mad? Are you  _bloody mad_ ? Do you want to ruin the whole company? Are you dying again and want to... Oh God, you are dying again!"

"No. No, I'm definitely not dying again."

"Fine, so you  _are_ mad. Great. Just what I needed."

"I'm not mad, Pepper."

"Canceling all the contracts with Odin Borson? That sounds mad to me. Do you even know  _how much money_ -"

"I don't care about the money, Pepper, I wanna have nothing to do with that fucker."

"Give me a reason. Give me  _one_ good reason."

"I can't. Sorry. It's kind of a secret."

"If you think that you-"

The intercom on Tony's desk beeped.

"Oh, sorry, gotta get this," the billionaire said. "I'm listening."

"Sir, Mr. Smith is here and he would like to talk to you."

"Mr. Smith? Oh, fuck, Mr. Smith," Tony gulped. "Is it a very tall, black-haired and angry Mr. Smith?"

The door of the office swung open and a man perfectly fitting Tony's description walked inside, a paper cup of coffee in his right hand.

"Anthony Stark!" he growled.

"Oh, yeah, it's  _that_ Mr. Smith. Shit."

"Just for your information, I'm missing an appointment, so thank you, because Amora will  _kill me_ ," said Loki. "What the  _fuck_ were you thinking? I've just read it on my phone, it's all over the financial news. Your shares are falling like your stupid suit when it runs out of energy and... Oh, miss Potts. Hello."

Pepper cleared his throat.

"And you are..."

"I'm Mr. Stark's whore," Loki shrugged. "Now, I guess we're both on the same boat right now, so... Will you need help with getting rid of his body?"

"There will be no getting rid of the body," Tony sighed. "No one is killing anyone today and... Pepper, would you stop inspecting him, for fuck's sake? You look like an inquisitor."

"You are seriously paying him for talking to you like that?" she asked.

"No, he's paying me for fucking him so hard he forgets his own name, now please, could we talk about his idiocy rather than my job?"

"Loki, seriously-"

"Loki?" Pepper blinked. "Wait. Loki. That was... the name of Odin Borson's son, wasn't it? The one who...  _Wait_ ."

"She's much smarter than you are," Loki muttered. "And she's never even slept with me."

"All right," Pepper nodded and sat down in one of the armchairs for guests. "You two have exactly five minutes to explain what's going on."

"A bit bossy, isn't she?" asked Loki.

"Hush," Tony replied. "Or she'll have two bodies to get rid of."

"I'm still waiting, boys..."

 

Half an hour later, a secretary brought two cups of coffee into Tony's office and placed them on the desk, between a shocked billionaire and an even more shocked prostitute. Then she walked back out.

"Wow," Tony said, about a minute after that.

"Wow," Loki nodded.

"She was so pissed off."

"I don't think I have ever seen  _anyone_ being that angry."

"Well... At least she doesn't want to kill  _me_ anymore."

"Oh, yes. But I do."

"Come on, Loki..."

"No. No 'come on'," Loki shook his head. "You are an idiot. Do you really think you can get away with a stunt like that? Odin is going to sue you, he is going to  _destroy_ you."

"Frankly, baby, I think you're overestimating him. He's not that rich and powerful."

"He will  _try_ to destroy you."

"Well, let him try," Tony shrugged. "I can afford being sued by him."

"Anthony-"

"No. Look, Lolita, I will have nothing to do with a man who threw his son out because he wasn't an obedient little puppet. He hurt you, he told everyone you were dead, you're what you are only because of him. No, Loki, just... No."

"But-"

"If you're worried, don't be. Pepper's really good at damage control. She'll handle it."

"But Anthony..."

"You're not gonna make me change my mind, baby."

"You didn't have to do this. We're not even  _friends_ ."

"Aren't we?" Tony frowned. "Well, okay. I was kind of feeling like we might be."

"Did you?"

"Yeah. Well, never mind that, let's keep our relationship strictly professional, as you wish. Are you free on Sunday?"

 

Strictly professional. Well, if that was what Loki wanted, fine. Tony could do that. He would like to become the prostitute's friend, but you can't always get what you want.

Was it strictly professional to, now that he had his number, text Loki on Sunday morning to tell him he's looking forward to their appointment? Tony did it, anyway, and just hoped that Loki wouldn't get mad at him.

It scared him a little when, only five minutes or so after sending the message, his phone rang.

"Lolita?" he said when he answered the call.

"Mr. Stark," Loki replied. "Anthony. I'm afraid that I am not going to make it to our appointment."

"What?" Tony blinked. "Shit, it's because of the text? Gosh, I'm sorry, I'm-"

"No, it's not because of that," Loki sighed. "It's just... I think I've got a flu or something. I don't feel very well."

"You don't sound like you've got a flu," Tony frowned. "No coughing, no sneezing..."

"I've got fever. I am sorry that it doesn't manifest itself through the phone."

"Okay, okay, no need to get all defensive on me. You've got something for it? I could bring you some... medicine, or chicken broth or..."

"What did we say about strictly professional, Stark?"

"Fine. As you wish. Just... take care. And get well soon, okay?"

"Trust me, I'm trying. Bye, Anthony."

"Bye, Loki..."

The moment he hung up, Tony looked on one of the many cameras in his flat.

"Jarvis? Did he really hiss right before that line about strictly professional?"

"I believe so, sir," the AI answered.

"I wonder... How many people called  _Loki Smith_ are there in New York?"

There was a moment of silence.

"Exactly one, sir."

"Can you get his address?"

"I can, sir."

"Great. Gimme. No, send the location to my phone. Thanks."

 

When he heard the knock on the door, Loki supposed it was going to be his elderly neighbor. She had looked very concerned about him when he had talked to her in the morning. Perhaps she made him lunch or something, or just came to invite him for tea, or...

He cursed himself for not checking if it really  _was_ her right after he had opened the door.

Because Tony Stark was standing there.

And there was just no way for Loki to hide his face quickly enough.

"Holy  _shit_ !" the billionaire exclaimed. "What happened to you?"

"What are you doing here?" the prostitute asked.

"I asked you first!" said Tony and took a step inside.

"Sorry, did I invite you in?"

"I invited myself, thanks," said Tony, slamming the door behind himself. "Holy shit, Loki, you look like a coloring book of a child with severe depression!"

"Thank you. That's very reassuring," Loki sighed.

Tony grabbed Loki's chin and took a closer look at his face. Almost half of it was blue or purple, badly bruised. On the prostitute's left eyebrow, there was a small wound, stitched together. Tony didn't want to imagine what was hiding underneath Loki's clothes.

"Who did this to you?" he whispered.

"Does it matter?" Loki shrugged and immediately winced.

"Yes, it does. Who?"

"Oh, please, there's no need to avenge me or anything," Loki muttered and headed back for his comfortable couch. "I'm not some fucking damsel in distress. I can take care of myself. He's much worse than me. I even managed to break his rib."

"Who was it, Loki?"

"This is not what I call professional, Mr. Stark," Loki smirked as he slowly sat down. "It was a client, of course. One of my regulars, unfortunately. He was bloody drunk. I don't fuck people  _that_ drunk, but he wouldn't take no for an answer. So he decided to teach me a lesson. I hope that he learned  _his_ lesson."

"Tell me his name."

"I definitely  _won't_ , Anthony. It's fine. I'm fine. Things like this just happen when you do my job. It's nothing to worry about."

"Nothing to worry about? Have you seen your face?!"

"It looks much worse than it really is," Loki sighed. "It's just my hemophilia, it makes me bruise way too easily. Don't worry, I went to the hospital, they said I was okay. No internal bleeding, nothing dangerous. It just looks horrible, nothing more. I swear. And please, pet the cat already, she's waiting for it."

"What?" Tony frowned and looked around him before spotting a ginger cat on the floor right in front of him. "Oh, shit! Hi, you... thing."

"Her name is Freyja," said Loki.

"Uhm... Cool?"

"Like the Norse goddess of war and sex. They will tell you she was the goddess of  _love_ , but it was more about the actual intercourse than love, really. She was the goddess of young girls. Also, she didn't really like mythological Loki."

"You named your cat after a goddess who hated the god you were named after?" Tony smirked and bent down to pet the cat. It immediately started to purr. "Oh, but aren't you just gorgeous, girl? You don't know I'm the one who's been keeping your human away from you at nights, do you?"

"Interesting," Loki smiled. "Freyja usually doesn't like strangers."

"But it's so easy to like me," said Tony. "Much harder to like you."

"You are not supposed to talk to me like that when I'm injured," Loki commented.

"It's not my fault that you are," Tony shrugged.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Mr. Stark, but it seems to me that you fail to understand that some of us need to  _work_ for a living."

"Don't I pay you enough? You know, if you wanted-"

"Please, I'm really not in the mood for this," Loki sighed. "Freyja, come here. Anthony, if you want to stay, you can order some food and you can watch TV with me. You don't? Thought so. So have a nice day and-"

"I'd love to, actually," said Tony. "What would you like to eat?"

"Oh, hell," Loki murmured to the cat who just jumped onto his lap. "And you liked him, you traitor. And now I'm not going to get rid of him. Thank you so much, really. Ouch. Watch where you put those paws. My ribs really hurt..."

 

They had been watching some stupid TV show for fifteen minutes, slowly eating the pizza Tony had ordered, when Loki suddenly cleared his throat.

"I was thinking about it, you know," he said.

"Sorry, I think I missed a part of this conversation. Thinking about what?" Tony blinked.

"Offering you to become my... only client."

"Did you? Good. I accept."

"It's not that simple, Anthony. It would feel... weird, somehow. I would feel like your... mistress, or something."

"Oh, yes, because it doesn't feel weird at all to take money from... how many people a week?"

"Three? Four? Five, sometimes," Loki muttered. "But I like my job, I do. Or... At least I used to like it. I enjoy sex, hell, I do. It's just that after all those years, I feel so... tired. Always smiling, always flirting, always perfect. Most of my clients would run away if they saw me like this, you know? And you didn't."

"Because I like you, Lolita. I really, really do. And it would be good to come to you and fuck you without having to order you first."

"But there is another problem," Loki sighed. "And that is what will I do when you get tired of me, eh? Amora will never take me back. If I leave, I have left forever. I will have to go back to... waking the streets. And I don't want that."

"Who says I will ever get tired of you, babe?"

"I do. Because whether you like it or not, that's how it works. Someone hires you, promises you everything, and then finds someone else and throws you out. Easy. It's happened to a few friends of mine."

"I won't get tired of you, Lolita."

"Wait until you fall in love with some tall and stupid blonde."

"Captain America is really not my type," Tony smirked. "And besides, you could save the extra money I would be giving you. And you could study. What... what happened to MIT?"

"Odin didn't wish me to study engineering. He called it useless," Loki shrugged. "And then... Then it didn't matter anymore. When I ended up homeless."

"You could study now. I can support you. Or you don't need to study, I'll give you all the books you need and I'll teach you myself and... Okay, that would be pretty useless outside my company, yeah, sorry, you'll have to study."

"Anthony-"

"But it doesn't matter. I won't get tired of you, I promise."

"From what I've heard, they always promise. No, Anthony, forget about it. Things should stay just the way they are."

"But-"

"Just don't listen to me, okay?" Loki murmured and watched his cat curl into a ball on the kitchen counter. "It's nothing. Just a really bad mood. It will go away."

"Lolita..."

"It's funny. You are the only man who's let me fuck him in... two or three years, I think. It's nice that I don't have to bottom all the time. But even you wouldn't give me a blowjob."

"What?" Tony blinked. "Wait, I never... Oh, you're right."

"It's fine. I understand. No one would give... Anthony, what are you doing?"

Suddenly, the inventor was kneeling in front of the couch.

"What does it look like?"

"Like you're about to... Anthony, stop it," Loki hissed when the billionaire reached for the waistband of his sweatpants. "You're not paying me for this."

"At the moment, I'm not paying you at all," Tony smirked and pulled the pants down. "Bloody hell, I can't believe I have never done this. I'm sorry, babe, I'm so sorry, I'm such a terrible lover..."

"You're not my lover, you're my... Oh,  _yes_ ," Loki sighed when Tony gave the head of his cock an experimental lick.

"I should probably warn you," Tony grinned. "I'm not very good at this."

"I'm sure you will be good enough," Loki gasped. "No, wait, you really don't have to... Okay, you have to do it now. Anthony..."

Mischief sparked in Tony's dark brown eyes. And Loki thought that he had never seen anything that sexy.

 

He came almost embarrassingly quickly. Why exactly Tony thought that he wasn't very good at it? He was bloody great, his tongue so clever, his mouth so hot and wet and...

For the first time since their encounter years ago, Tony heard Loki scream his name.

He almost never gave anyone a blowjob. And when he did, he never swallowed. He just didn't like it, for some reason.

But now, when he heard Loki's soft, broken whimpers, he did swallow. And he loved it.

Soon, he felt Loki pulling at his hair, dragging him up until he was sitting in the prostitute's lap, and then Loki's lips claiming his, his tongue forcing its way into Tony's mouth, eager, hungry, passionate...

It ended way too soon and left Tony panting, trying hard to catch his breath.

"That was... Just this one time, all right?" Loki murmured. "Just this once."

"What a shame," Tony replied. "What about the next time I suck you off?"

Loki gave him a light peck on the lips.

"Thank you, Anthony. You are truly amazing."

"Well, I do my best," Tony grinned.

"Yeah, it could be a little better, but..."

Suddenly, the doorbell rang and Loki sighed.

"Okay, this will probably be my neighbor," he said. "Stand up, will you? I'll be right back. Just sit here and don't move."

"Yes, sir," Tony saluted.

The moment Loki opened the door, he once again cursed himself for not checking who was standing there, first. Because this most definitely wasn't his neighbor. It was a tall, bulky blonde with a rather sheepish look on his face. But that quickly changed into a look of complete shock.

"Loki," he gasped. "Brother, what happened to-"

"Oh, no, it's the first again?" the prostitute rolled his eyes. "Still not interested. See you in a month."

And then he quickly shut the door.

"What was that about?" asked Tony. "Wait, that was... That was Thor, wasn't it? The one with the surname I am forbidden to mention?"

"The one who still claims to be my brother, yes," Loki smirked. "Don't worry about him. He comes here once a month, first day of the month, actually, to try to convince me to talk to him. I never did, but he just won't give up."

"How long exactly has this been going on?" Tony frowned.

"Four years? Maybe five? Since he managed to finally find me on my new address."

"Excuse me, he's been coming here once a month,  _every_ month, for four or five years?" Tony frowned. "And you haven't let him in?"

"Why should I?"

"Because he's your fucking brother-"

"He is not my brother!" Loki growled.

"It seems that he's got a different opinion."

"I don't give a fuck about that oaf's opinion," Loki muttered. "And stop talking about him right now, or you can leave, too."

Tony stood up and walked over to the window.

"Oh, yes," he said after a quick glance out. "You probably don't give a fuck about that oaf crying in his car right now, either."

"About  _what_ ?" Loki blinked and stood next to him, only to see his adoptive brother in his very luxurious car, with his face in his hands and his shoulders shaking. "Oh, shit."

"Shit," Tony nodded.

"But I don't give a fuck," said Loki. "I  _don't_ ."

"Yeah, that sounded very sincere. Especially since you just went a few shades paler than usual. I mean... on the parts of your face not covered with bruises."

"No, I didn't," said Loki.

"As you wish," Tony smirked, opening the window.

"What are you doing?" Loki gulped. "Anthony, don't-"

"Odinson!" Tony shouted. "Hey,  _Thor Odinson_ !"

Loki closed his eyes just when Thor looked up and probably saw them both.

"Yeah, you!" Tony continued. "Come back upstairs. The little drama queen will talk to you."

"I most definitely-"

"Yes, you will. How much do you want, twenty thousand? I'll give you twenty thousand dollars if you just fucking talk to him."

"I won't-"

"Thirty."

"I said-"

"He's your  _brother_ , for fuck's sake! No matter what you say, no matter how stubborn you are, he  _is_ your brother. And he wants to see you, he wants it so bad he always comes again, even though he knows that you'll tell him to fuck off. Tell me, Loki, what would you do if he just didn't show up one of those months, eh?"

"I..." Loki bit his lip and shook his head. "I don't know."

"Just talk to him. Please, Lolita," Tony murmured and ran his fingers through Loki's hair. "And then, if you want, just call me and I'll come back and we'll watch a movie or have sex or something."

"You mean that you won't be here?"

"Of course not. This is a family... thing. I'm not your family. And no. Don't you dare say he's not your family, either."

The doorbell rang again.

Tony walked over to the door and opened it.

"Hi, Thor, my name's Tony, nice to meet you," he nodded. "Have a nice chat with your idiot of a brother. Loki, call me if you want when you're done here. Bye, Thor. Bye, Lolita. Bye, Freyja, wherever you are."

He walked out, pushed the very confused blonde inside and closed the door from the outside.

"Oh, well done, Tony," he whispered. "Because he's definitely gonna kill you for this."

 

Inside the flat, Loki was furiously pretending not to be shaking. He was also trying to convince himself that his heart wasn't beating rapidly and his breath had never been slower. Also, he was perfectly able to tear his gaze away from the suddenly very interesting carpet and look at Thor, he just didn't want to.

"That was..." Thor muttered.

"Tony Stark," Loki confirmed. "He's a client. Likes to think he's a friend, too."

"Father's contracts," Thor frowned. "That was..."

"I had nothing to do with it," Loki shook his head. "It was his decision. I... He recognized me, okay? It took him some time, but he did. And I told him about... my adoption and how I left home and why does everyone think that I am dead. The next thing I know, the idiot has canceled the contracts. No, not my idea."

There was silence. Loki crossed his arms across his chest to stop them from  _visibly_ shaking.

"A client," said Thor, quietly.

"Yes. A client," Loki smirked. "Don't pretend you don't know about my, uhm... job."

"Of course that I do."

"And you must be so  _very_ proud of me, dear  _brother_ ," Loki growled.

"I don't mind it, if you need to know."

"Oh, yes, I believe you, of course. Does mother know?"

"I didn't tell her. She would never forgive herself for not protecting you," Thor sighed and Loki felt tears burning in his eyes. He blinked rapidly.

"Does Odin know? Please, tell me that  _he_ knows."

"I have no idea, Loki. He never talks about you. When he pretended to bury you, he... You really are dead to him. I am sorry, brother."

"Please, save that sentiment for someone who cares. And I am  _not_ your brother, I never  _was_ your brother. It was a lie, can you understand it in that tiny brain of yours?"

"You will always be my brother, Loki, can you understand _that_ in that stubborn head of yours?"

"Keep telling yourself that lie, Thor. I am sure it's been helping you very much those past few years."

Silence again. Then a sigh. And then...

"You know what? You are probably right. I don't think that you are my brother. Not anymore. I've kept coming back to you because I thought I would find the Loki I know one day. But he's dead, isn't he?"

"Probably," the prostitute nodded.

A sad smile appeared on Thor's lips.

"All right then. I will not bother you anymore."

"You mean until next month?"

"I mean never again," Thor mumbled. "I have just realized I can never find my brother again. Goodbye, Loki."

Loki's green eyes widened and he felt his heartbeat speeding up even more.

_Tell me, Loki, what would you do if he just didn't show up one of those months, eh_ ?

"Well... As you wish," the prostitute said. "Would you like a goodbye hug?"

"Don't force yourself," Thor muttered and turned to the door.

This couldn't be happening. Thor would never give up, he would never leave him. His only connection to his old life would never just disappear, not like this, not like...

"Thor?" Loki whispered, panic taking over him.

"What?"

The moment the blonde turned back, Loki took a step forward and hugged him tight. It was familiar, so terribly familiar. Thor's scent, his muscles, his height and warmth, it was as if nothing changed on him.

"Don't go. Please, please, don't go. I am an idiot, I know that I am, I don't know why, please, just  _don't leave me_ , brother,  _please_ ."

Almost nothing on Loki seemed familiar to Thor. Although the blonde of course saw the small changes every time he visited him, it was only now that he realized how much different this Loki was from the one who left their home years ago. But when Loki let his tears flow, Thor just wrapped his arms around his brother and held him tight.

"I won't leave you," he promised. "I'm not going anywhere, don't worry..."

 

It was half past ten when Tony got the expected call from Loki. He didn't care. He took one of his cars and drove to Loki's flat.

When the prostitute opened the door, Tony tried hard to keep his most charming smile on his face. Loki nodded.

"Two things," he said.

"Two-"

He was silenced by a hard slap across his face.

"That was number one," Loki announced.

"Was it really? I wouldn't-"

And he was silenced once again, this time by a tiny kiss on his lips.

"That was number two," Loki mumbled. "I hate you. But thank you."

"I think that's called ambivalence, isn't it?" Tony asked while rubbing his cheek. "Gosh, you certainly know how to smack someone in the face."

"Sorry," Loki smiled. "Would you like to come in?"

"So you can beat me some more?"

"I promised I'll let you fuck me, didn't I?" Loki grinned.

"What? No. No, Lolita, not when you're all... blue."

"Just a few bruises. Come on. It's nothing. I'm fine. And it doesn't have to be all wild, I just... I need to feel you,  _close_ . Please."

"But wouldn't it be better to, I don't know, talk?"

"I've had enough of that with Thor. Come on, Anthony. You don't have to pay me, of course."

"You know that I've got no problem with-"

"I'll let you kiss me," Loki whispered.

"You are totally impossible, Lolita."

"Please. I need it. I need to be, even if just  _once_ , fucked by someone who actually cares about me."

"You are really desperate, aren't you?"

Loki kissed him on the lips, instantly making Tony (and himself) moan.

"Please..."


	4. My personal whore

Tony was woken up by a pair of lips against his forehead. He mumbled something unintelligible, incomprehensible even to his own brain, then growled and tried to hide his face in the pillow, which would be a lot easier if he didn't try to bury his nose into Loki's arm instead.

"Anthony, wake up," the prostitute whispered.

"Nope," Tony muttered.

"You've got a text from Pepper. You need to be in the office in about an hour."

"Don't care. Don't want."

He pulled Loki closer to him and nuzzled his long black hair.

"You have to, Anthony. You won't be the one she kills if you're not there," Loki protested.

"She won't kill you, either. Gonna protect you."

"Anthony, get up right now or I'm never going to let you top again."

The inventor pulled away and gaped at Loki.

"Excuse me? Who is the paying customer here?"

"You are awake. Good," Loki smiled. "Good morning."

"Oh, shit..." Tony growled and yawned. "I really stayed for the whole night? I hope I wasn't stealing your blanket too much."

"You weren't."

"Good. Morning, Lolita."

He tried to kiss Loki's lips again, but the prostitute turned his head so the kiss landed on his cheek.

"Don't," he sighed. "That was just yesterday, okay? Yesterday, I needed it. I needed a friend and I needed a lover. When you are my client, the rules stay the same as they were. My lips are forbidden. Understood?"

"Absolutely. Can I use your shower, please? I don't want to drive home all sweaty."

"Of course. You know where it is," Loki shrugged. "There are some towels on the shelf next to the shower. It doesn't matter which one you take. And feel free to use my shampoo and shower gel."

"Thanks," Tony nodded. "And could I get some coffee? Pretty please?"

"It will be ready when you get out of the shower."

"Thanks, Loki. You're a star."

 

He heard Loki's angry voice immediately after he had walked out of the bathroom ten minutes later. He wasn't able to understand the words, but the tone was clear enough. He hurried to the kitchen, where he saw Loki pacing back and forth on the small space, talking to his phone.

"No.  _No, Amora_ . I've told you, I can't. ... No, I don't care about the money, for goodness sake. I cannot let anyone see me like this! ... Make-up can't save everything, Amora. My face is mostly blue, you can't cover  _that_ ! And I'm not even talking about my  _ribs_ . ... Stop yelling at me, Amora, it's not  _my fault_ ! He was completely drunk, and he caught me off guard! ... Oh, well, thank you for your concern. ... No. No, I'm not working tonight. ... Just no, Amora! I can't, I'm glad I'm able to move! ... Yes, I mean it. ... You know what? I don't care. Fuck you. I'd be better off walking the streets again, at least I would be able to decide when I want to work! ... Yes, I said  _fuck you_ ! Good bye, Amora. Don't call me again."

It seemed that Loki saw him only after ending the call, judging by the way he suddenly froze, his phone still in his hand.

"Anthony," he gulped. "Did you hear..."

"I've heard enough," the billionaire growled.

"I..." Loki hesitated. "The thing that we talked about yesterday..."

"How about twenty thousand a month, plus I'm gonna pay your rent?"

"Seriously?" Loki frowned.

"Yup," Tony nodded. "And I can take you shopping, let's say... once a month?"

"Anthony-"

"One condition," Tony said and held out his finger. "You're gonna at least  _think_ about MIT."

"I don't need to think about it, I-"

" _One_ condition, Loki."

"Fine. I'll  _think_ about it. Happy?"

"Yes," Tony smiled. "Oh, sorry, two conditions. I don't want to keep meeting you at the hotel. If you're not comfortable with me coming here, fine. You can come to Stark Tower, I have a whole  _floor_ to myself. If you'd like, you could even move to Stark Tower. Not to my apartment, of course. I'd give you your own flat."

"That..." Loki gulped. "That can wait, okay? But I would love to come to your place."

"Fine. It's settled, then. Congratulations, you've just become my personal whore. How does it feel?"

"The MIT suddenly sounds better than ever."

"Well, aren't you a little darling?" Tony smirked. "Did you manage to make me that coffee, by the way?"

"Oh, yeah, of course," Loki remembered. "I hope that you don't mind an Iron Man mug."

"An Iron Man mug?" Tony grinned. "Where the hell did you get an Iron Man mug?"

"I bought it. I liked the design," Loki shrugged. "And besides, that suit is incredibly sexy."

"You know you're probably the only person, well, except for me of course, who thinks that?"

"Drink the coffee," Loki mumbled and placed the mug in front of Tony. "I really don't want your Pepper to hate me."

"Don't worry, she won't," Tony winked. "Hey, why don't you come with me? You'd wait for me until I'm done with the meeting or whatever Pepper needs me to attend, and then I'd show you around."

"I don't know," Loki sighed. "I don't think I feel like-"

"I'll show you the suits. And I'm not talking about the Armani ones."

"Shit," Loki whispered. "If you mean it, give me fifteen minutes to get dressed."

"I mean it," Tony smiled.

Loki immediately disappeared into the bedroom.

 

Pepper was already waiting for Tony when he and Loki arrived into his flat. She opened her mouth, probably to yell (as the billionaire was exactly twenty-seven minutes late), but froze the moment she saw Loki.

He had  _tried_ to cover his bruises with make-up, but some of them were still visible.

"My god, what happened to you?" Pepper gasped.

"It wasn't me," Tony quickly said.

"Of course it wasn't  _you_ , I'd never thought it was. You're into some pretty wild stuff, but not into  _this_ !"

"It's nice to see you, too, miss Potts," Loki smiled. "But please, ignore my face, thank you."

"But what-"

"Occupational hazard, I'm afraid," Loki sighed. "It's nothing."

"Tony, are you not going to do anything about it?" she turned to the billionaire.

"Do what? Convince him to tell me the fucker's name,  _then_ I might!"

"I told you I managed to break his rib, that's enough for revenge, isn't it? There's no need to  _save me_ . Really, miss Potts, I'm fine."

"You heard him? He's fine," Tony shrugged. "And it's true, at least last night he seemed pretty fine, so fine he didn't even charge me for sex... Okay, stop looking at me like that. I know, discussing my sex life is a no-no, especially my sex life with a prostitute. Okay, what did you need me to do?"

"Sign some contracts," she said and pointed to a several inches high pile of papers. "I wanted to give them to you yesterday, but you weren't at home."

"Yeah, you know, taking care of a beaten whore," he said and pointed to Loki.

"The whore didn't  _need_ your help," Loki smirked.

"Yeah, whatever. So I can do it here, then? I don't need to suit up?"

"You might change your clothes," Loki commented.

"Good idea," Tony nodded. "Wait here, okay? Both of you. I'll be right back. Pepper, would you please make me a coffee?"

"You've already had one!"

"Yeah. One, Lolita, that's the problem. Pepper, baby?"

"Of course, Tony," she sighed. Tony winked and disappeared in a corridor which probably lead to his bedroom.

"Are you really going to make coffee for him?" asked Loki.

"Trust me, it will make the paperwork a lot more bearable," she nodded. "Do you want one, too?"

"Well, if it's not much of a problem..." the prostitute smiled.

"Come with me," she said and gestured to him to follow her. "You can help me."

"Of course, miss Potts."

"Don't call me miss Potts, please. I'm Pepper."

"All right. Pepper. I am Loki."

"Yes, I know," she nodded. "You know, if you told  _me_ the name of the man who did this to you, I could make his life a living hell without causing any physical harm to him."

"Thank you, I appreciate that, but no. I meant it when I said that it was merely an occupational hazard. There's no need to punish the man any further."

"Fine," Pepper nodded. "Loki, can I ask you a question?"

"Let me guess. It's either 'why are you doing what you are doing', or 'do you just want Tony's money'. So which one?"

"Oh..." Pepper quietly said and blushed a little.

"So the second one," Loki nodded. "I am a whore, Pepper. I am not ashamed of myself for being one. So yes, I do want his money. Not all of it, of course. I want to get paid, that's all. I will not seduce him, force him to buy me everything I want and then break his heart. I am not like that. And I admit that I've found myself enjoying his... friendship, lately. You don't need to worry about him. He's safe with me."

"You know, for some reason," she frowned, "I think I can trust you."

"Thank you," said Loki.

"Just out of curiosity, why are you doing... what you are doing?" she asked.

"Because I am completely useless when it comes to almost any other job," he laughed. "And the only thing I would like to do I cannot do, because I am not qualified for it."

"And that's..."

Tony chose that exact moment to come back to the living room.

"I'm here!" he announced. "I want my coffee and I want a pen. I promised Loki to show him my workshop and I would really like to get there before I'm eighty. Come on, Potts, hurry up! Loki, you just... sit down and find something to read, okay? I'll be with you in... Oh, hell, that pile is fucking  _enormous_ . Okay, let's get to work, then..."

 

It took them an hour to get to the workshop. Tony's right wrist hurt from signing all the contracts, and he was so bored that he almost wasn't in the mood to show Loki around. (That quickly changed the moment he saw the awe and wonder in the prostitute's eyes.)

It took him another hour to show Loki everything he wanted him to see. The suits, of course. His beloved bots. He spent fifteen minutes listening to Loki's playful banter with Jarvis (and he had never felt more proud of his AI,  _never_ ).

It was almost too perfect to be true. The way Loki's eyes were shining with amazement, his apparent need to touch everything (including Dummy, which made the bot whirr with happiness), his never-ending stream of questions.

Of course that it all had to go to hell when Loki found that idiotic box Tony should have thrown away a long time ago. Why the hell did he bring it all the way from Malibu? Probably Pepper's work.

"Proof that Tony Stark has a heart?" the prostitute read out loud. "What is it?"

"Nothing," Tony shook his head. "Piece of junk. Leave it alone."

"It looks like..." Loki mumbled, then blinked. "Fine. I understand."

"Do you?" Tony smirked.

"It's clearly the same thing that you have in your chest," Loki shrugged and it was the first time Tony heard him even  _mention_ the existence of the arc reactor. "You don't want to talk about that. So you don't want to talk about this. Meaning I'll go with 'piece of junk'. Simple."

"Loki, you are probably one of the most amazing people I know."

"I surely hope that I am."

Tony took the box from Loki's hands and walked over to sit on the couch.

"You're an engineering nerd, aren't you?" he sighed. "You've read about most of my newest inventions. So you probably know everything you can about the arc reactor."

Loki gaped at him and took a few steps closer.

"Are you seriously telling me that you have managed to  _miniaturize_ ... Anthony, that's wonderful! How?"

"That is a very long and complicated story," Tony muttered and closed his eyes.

"More complicated than mine?" asked Loki.

"There's certainly a lot more blood and violence."

He felt Loki's hand clasp his knee.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, Anthony."

"Did it hurt when you were telling me your story?"

"Why are you asking?"

"Did it, Lolita?"

Loki sighed.

"Yes. Yes, it did."

"Fine," Tony nodded. "I suppose you remember how I was kidnapped in Afghanistan, right?"

"I do."

"There are few details the press never learned. Most importantly that they used my own missiles against the convoy, and one of them exploded right next to me, and..."

 

Tony found himself telling Loki everything. Afghanistan, Obie, the poisoning. Every detail, even those he had never mentioned to Rhodey or Pepper. And Loki just sat there, on the floor, with his hand on Tony's knee, and listened.

And when Tony went quiet, Loki gave him a little, sad smile.

"All right," he whispered. "Now I understand why you don't like to talk about it."

"Yeah," Tony sighed.

"I can't believe you nearly died because of this," Loki mumbled, his eyes focused on the circle of light on Tony's chest. "You are an idiot."

"Thanks, Lolita, really."

Loki's fingers were trembling when he lifted his hand from Tony's knee.

"So if someone takes it out... you die?" he asked.

"Yeah. That's why I hate when someone touches it, or sees it, or even asks about it, because... I don't know who I can trust. I trusted Obie, and..."

But when Loki placed his hand on Tony's chest, right on the reactor, the inventor didn't flinch.

"You can trust me, I swear," said Loki.

Tony placed his hand over Loki's and smiled.

"I know."

"And just so you know, Anthony, you are  _the most_ amazing person I have ever met."

"Isn't it that starstruck teenage boy talking?"

"Well, well. And I wanted to offer you that I could call my neighbor to feed Freyja tonight."

"You mean... so you could stay here with me?"

"I didn't want to be alone yesterday. You probably don't want to be alone tonight. Fair's fair. But only if-"

"Stay with me. Please."

"Fine," Loki smiled. "I will."

 

During the night, Tony had to admit he was more than glad for having Loki around. The first time he felt asleep, he dreamed about the cave in Afghanistan, about his torture, and it was so vivid that, upon waking up, Tony was, if only for a moment, completely convinced that he was back, which hadn't happened to him in months. He was shaking and whimpering, unable to think, almost unable to even breathe.

It was so good to be able to let himself be hugged by Loki, to feel his long and lean, but strong arms around his body, to feel the prostitute's breath against his cheek, to hear his whispered soothing words.

And it became even better when Loki wrapped his fingers around the inventor's cock and just brought him to orgasm while kissing his cheeks and neck and earlobe. Not his lips, not even once, but Tony was used to that.

He felt back asleep shortly after his climax.

This time, he dreamed about  _escaping_ from the cave. He watched Yinsen die again, he felt the rage he had felt back then, he saw fire and he flew and he fell...

This time, he woke up with Loki's arms already wrapped tight around him. He just hugged the prostitute closer, shaking like a leaf.

"Anthony," Loki mumbled. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry for causing this..."

Tony buried his nose in the crook of Loki's neck and focused on his breathing. It was the warmth of Loki's body what lulled him to sleep again.

Only to dream about Obie. About being betrayed, having his reactor ripped out of his chest, being helpless and almost feeling the shrapnel getting closer and closer to his heart...

He woke up crying and hating himself for it.

He didn't want to be this weak, and he surely didn't want to be this weak in front of  _Loki_ . He wanted to shove his lover away and run and hide somewhere, not pull him closer than humanly possible and sob into his naked chest. But he just wasn't able to stop. He needed Loki to calm down, he knew he did. With Loki, he felt safe. With Loki, he felt content. Loki would never betray him like this.

When he was at least able to control his sobbing, he pulled away a little, so his face was right in front of Loki's. He could feel the warm breath on his lips and it was driving him insane not to be allowed to kiss Loki, because he needed it, he needed it so bad...

"Go on," Loki whispered. "It's fine."

So he did kiss him. He was kissing him until he fell asleep once again.

This time, there were no more nightmares.

 

Loki hated to leave Tony alone in the morning, but it couldn't be helped.

The inventor looked terrible, pale and with dark circles around his eyes. When Pepper saw him, she didn't comment on it. She probably knew that it hadn't been Loki keeping him awake all night.

Loki would have stayed, of course, because somehow, he saw it as  _his_ fault. After all, it was their talk the day before which brought the bad memories back. But Tony had other duties, in fact, he was leaving for Malibu that afternoon ( _"But I told you, Tony! I even told Jarvis to remind it to you, it's not my fault that you muted him when he tried to!"_ ), so there would be just no point in staying.

Besides, Loki found a text from Thor just before going home, saying that his brother needs to talk to him,  _urgently_ .

"I let him in  _once_ ," Loki sighed. "If he's going to invite himself over every other day, I swear I am going to kill him. All right, I have to go. Are you sure you are going to be all right?"

"Don't worry about me," said Tony with a tired smile. "I'll be just fine. Thanks for everything, Lolita."

"Could you stop calling me  _Lolita_ ?" Loki growled.

"Nope. My cute little Lolita," Tony winked. "I should be back in New York in a few days. Can I call you then?"

"I expect you to," Loki nodded. "Take care."

"You too. And could I... could I get a goodbye kiss? Pretty please. Just a tiny one..."

"Of course you can, Anthony."

 

Thor was already pacing in front of his door when Loki arrived, and he looked like he hadn't got much sleep last night, either.

"Brother!" he exclaimed the moment he saw Loki.

"You won't stop with that, will you?" Loki sighed. "But hi. I guess you'll want to come in."

"If you will allow me," Thor nodded.

Loki unlocked the door and opened it.

"Don't step on my cat," he said.

Thor went inside and Loki followed him. He heard a soft thud and a meow. A few seconds later, a ginger cat went running to him. Loki grinned.

"Oh, hello, baby," he said and took it to his arms. "I'm sorry for leaving you alone again, girl. I promise I won't do it again for a few days, don't worry..."

The cat purred softly and closed its eyes.

"Loki," said Thor.

"Just sit down," Loki pointed to the couch with a free finger. "And tell me what you wanted. Or do you want something to drink? I have... Well, water, orange juice, coffee and tea."

"No, thank you, I am fine," Thor shook his head and sat down. "But I spoke with father yesterday. For the first time since Stark canceled the contracts."

"I thought..."

"Mother was the one who told me. Father was too busy."

"Oh. Right," Loki nodded and sat in the armchair. "Odin is furious, I suppose."

"That is probably the understatement of the century," Thor commented. "The last time I saw him this angry was... after you left. It's even worse because he doesn't see any reason  _why_ would Stark cancel the contracts. I spent half an hour listening to him yelling about a  _spoiled Stark brat_ and a  _wannabe superhero_ and... other things I would rather not mention. Mostly involving the term  _cocksucker_ ."

"He is even nicer than I remember him," Loki smirked. "All right, why are you telling me?"

"Because Father wants to hire a private detective to dig up some dirt on your dear client."

"Dig up some dirt?" Loki laughed. "There is no need for  _that_ . Everyone knows that Tony Stark is no saint. You don't need to dig anything up, his mistakes have fucking  _flashing neon signs_ above them."

"Father wants to find something nobody knows about. Preferably tax evasions or something like that, but anything will do."

"Well, good luck with that."

"Loki."

"What?"

"The dirt might include Stark hiring a prostitute to... satisfy his needs."

"Oh shit. You mean..."

"Exactly," Thor nodded.

"That the asshole might  _out him_ ?"

"What? No!" Thor blinked. "No, I meant that Father could find out about... about you."

"So?" Loki frowned. "I don't care if he knows. In fact, let him find out. If we're all lucky, he's going to have a heart attack or something."

"That was very mean, Loki."

"Yeah. Whatever," Loki shrugged. "I am more concerned about the possibility that he really might out Anthony."

"You know, Loki..." Thor smiled. "If I didn't know you, I'd think you're in love with Stark."

"But you do know me," Loki muttered. "So you know that I'm not."

"Yes. Of course," said Thor with a slight tilt of his head. "But you care for him."

"I cannot deny that. He is an amazing person. If I were to fall in love with someone... Oh, well. Thank you, Thor."

"What for?"

"Not trying to convince me that I  _might_ fall in love one day," said Loki. "Hey, did you know that there's even a word for it now? I'm not the only one like that. Makes me feel a lot less like a freak..."


	5. I fucking love you, Lolita

Tony had been gone for a week and Loki had to admit he missed the billionaire a lot more than he would ever expect himself to. He missed his completely inappropriate jokes, missed being called a whore, missed the sex.

He had never realized how much he loved it until he stopped getting it regularly.

And he was bored. He was incredibly bored. Amora never called him, not even once. Not even to talk to him about that whole quitting business. She just ignored him. He was probably as dead to her as he was to Odin.

Good.

Sort of good.

Because he suddenly didn't have his work to keep him sane, and he was going, well... slightly insane.

Visits from Thor didn't really help. Three of them in a week. Loki was almost starting to regret ever letting him back into his life. (Almost, because on the other hand, it felt very good to be able to talk to his brother again.)

In the end, he was so bored that he picked up his old and probably terribly outdated engineering books, the ones he brought back from his old home and hadn't touched since then because that would just hurt too much.

But now he started reading them again and found himself, suddenly, thinking about Tony's offer. Not the MIT, no. Loki didn't exactly want to go anymore, it was too late for that. But the possibility of Tony teaching him himself, in his workshop, in between all those wonderful inventions of his...

Hell yes.

He was currently daydreaming, which hadn't happened to him since he left Odin's house, when he finally heard the ringtone belonging only to Tony.

"Anthony," he said into his phone. "Hello."

"Hi, Lolita. I just wanted to let you you know I'm back in New York."

"Oh. Good," Loki smiled. "How was Malibu?"

"You know... Sunny. Warm. Busy. Terribly busy. Too busy. But yeah, good. In a way. Missed you."

"Did you really?"

"Yeah. Lots."

"Well, do you want to come over?" Loki asked. "Or I can come over to your place. I am sure that Freyja will let me, since I've been at home all the time the past week..."

"No, I... I'll come to your place, if you don't mind," said Tony. "In an hour or so? Isn't it too early?"

"Not at all, Anthony. Could you perhaps... Bring some pizza or something for dinner?"

"Sure. Do you want me to bring some dessert, too?"

"I thought I was the dessert," Loki grinned. "But I guess a cake never killed anyone..."

 

They were lying in Loki's bed, all sweaty and breathless, but perfectly satisfied.

Up until the moment when there came a loud meow from behind the closed door.

"Just ignore her," Loki said. "She's used to sleeping here with me when she wants. I always leave the door open for her, she's confused because it's closed now. Don't worry, she's going to give up in a minute or two."

"Nope. She won't," Tony smiled and got to his feet. "Well, to be more precise, she won't have to."

He walked to the door and opened it. The ginger cat immediately sprinted inside, jumped onto the bed and poked Loki's face with her nose.

"Oh, hello, girl," Loki murmured. "You should thank Mr. Stark here for letting you in, you annoying little thing."

Tony laid back in the bed, behind Loki, wrapping his arm around the prostitute.

"How old is she?" he asked.

"About six and a half," said Loki when the cat curled by his side. "I found her a few weeks after I left my home. One day, in an alley I just had sex in. She was skinny and hungry and her fur was full of fleas... I nearly didn't have enough money to feed _myself_ , but I couldn't just leave her there. She was still a kitten. So I took her in and didn't eat properly for two months, just so I could pay for her vet and her food. And for some time, she... She was my only friend. And I guess that I am _her_ only friend."

"Wow," Tony whispered. "You really are so amazing, Loki."

"I am not," he shook his head. "Everyone would take her in. She was just so sad and lost... But you're happy now, aren't you, baby?"

"Oh, yes, I... Oh, you're talking to the cat," Tony smirked and kissed the back of Loki's neck.

"Idiot," Loki giggled. "Would you mind if she slept here with us?"

"If I did, I wouldn't let her in in the first place, would I?"

"Makes sense," Loki nodded. "Good night then, Anthony."

"Good night, Lolita..."

 

A month. It worked for exactly a month.

Then Tony found an envelope with some photos in his mail. Photos of himself and Loki somewhere on the street (was it when he took the prostitute shopping?), holding hands. A photo of Tony kissing Loki's cheek. They were both wearing shades, of course, but Tony was still pretty much recognizable.

And there was a note. A note from Odin Borson.

"Oh, shit," Loki muttered when Tony showed him. They were in Tony's apartment this time, Loki sitting on the couch. "I hoped that Thor was kidding."

"Kidding?" Tony frowned. "You mean that you knew... You knew it was possible that something like this would happen?"

"I tried to stop you," Loki shrugged. "From clinging to me all the bloody time."

"Yeah, but a _warning_ would have been nice," Tony snorted. "Do you think he's going to make this public?"

"You pissed him off when you canceled those contracts," Loki sighed. "He wants a revenge."

"Gorgeous. Oh, whatever. I don't care anymore."

"You don't?" Loki blinked.

"No. Fuck Odin. I'm not gonna let him _win_ this."

"What are you going to do, then?"

"What do you think? It's time for my public coming out. If I do it before he gives those pics to the press, _I_ win."

"Anthony, are you sure? You said you're not ready for it, ready for-"

"And what difference does it make, really?" Tony smirked. "Everyone's always questioning my motives, commenting on my lovers... It doesn't really matter if they know I like to get fucked in the ass or not."

"I don't think they need to know _that_."

"The point is, Loki... I really don't care anymore. If they know I like both men and women, fine, let them know. They're gonna talk shit about me for... what, two weeks? Then they're gonna forget about it. Jeez, why was I so scared to come out before I met you?"

"No idea," Loki shrugged. "But the important thing is... That you're not scared anymore. Good for you. At least you will be able to find a real relationship instead of this."

"This?" Tony blinked. "What the heck are you talking about?"

"This... _relationship_ ," Loki sighed. "It only started because you wanted to have a discreet fuck with a man from time to time. If you come out, there will be no need for that."

"Loki, if I wanted a real relationship, I'd find a woman, for fuck's sake! You're not the only bisexual around. But I don't want a real relationship with another man _or_ with a woman!"

"Why not?" Loki felt his heartbeat speeding up. _Why exactly was he doing this to himself?_ "It would be much better for you. Healthier. Easier."

"Maybe, but the only person I'd want to have a real relationship with is you!"

For several moments, they just gaped at each other.

"What?" Loki then whispered.

"I... Yeah," said Tony and bit his lower lip. "Fuck. Yeah. It's true."

"Stark... No."

Tony laughed.

"Oh, hell, I haven't realized. Why haven't I realized? I love you. I fucking love you, Lolita."

"You _can't_ ," Loki furiously shook his head. "You can't have fallen in love with me. Think about it, I'm a whore, you're paying me to have sex with you, I'm just-"

"You're just the most amazing person I have ever met," Tony grinned.

"Damn," Loki muttered and stood up. "I have to go."

"What? Why? Loki!"

"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry, Anthony. But don't call me again. Don't text me. Forget about me. Find someone... _someone_."

"Loki, what the hell-"

"Just forget you ever met me again, okay? Remember the kid who committed suicide years ago. _Please_."

Loki practically jumped into the elevator. Tony wasn't able to stop him. He wasn't even able to move. He just watched the doors close behind Loki.

 

 _"Hey, babe. I mean... Lolita. I mean Loki. Mr. Smith? Shit, how do I call you now? Never mind. I just want to tell you that I'm sorry. I screwed up. I shouldn't have said... what I said. It's true, but... Shit. Jarvis, can you erase this message? What the hell do you mean_ no _?!_ "

*BEEP*

 _"Hey, babe. It's me again. Fuck, no, I didn't want to say that, I swear, just... Let me try again, okay?_ "

*BEEP*

 _"Hi, Loki. Tony, I mean... Anthony here. In case you haven't realized. I'm really sorry. And I'd like you to know that I didn't mean what I said before. I mean, about loving you. Because I don't love you. It was just... all the stress talking. Really. I swear. Definitely no love here._ "

*BEEP*

 _"You don't believe me, do you?_ "

*BEEP*

 _"Okay, okay. I do love you. But I can stop if you want me to. I can try. I just... I miss you, Loki. Please. I miss you. Call me?_ "

*BEEP*

 _"Okay, don't call me if you don't feel like talking to me. I'm sorry, I should probably stop calling you. I... I'm sorry. I'm sorry for falling in love with you. If you ever forgive me... we could perhaps go back to being friends? I want you as a friend, Loki. I just... Okay, I'll stop here. Enough is enough. Bye, Lolita. Maybe I'll see you again, one day. Love you._ "

*BEEP*

 _"Just so you know, I am going to out myself today on TV. I meant it. I won't let Odin win. I just wish you were there with me. Bye, babe. Love ya._ "

 

"What would you do, Thor?" Loki sighed, staring at his phone. "What would you tell him?"

"The truth," Thor replied. "He deserves to know."

"Oh, does he? Why?"

"It's not his fault that he has fallen in love with you."

"And whose fault it is, then? I have done _nothing_ to encourage him to-"

"That is not how love _works_ , Loki!" Thor growled. "It isn't anybody's fault, it just happens. And usually, there's nothing you can do about it, you just find yourself _in love_ , and... That's it. No encouragement needed."

"Bullshit. Everything in your brain happens for a reason."

"For him, you are the reason, you idiot! Your mind or your body or your face or your smile or everything together, I don't know. Ask _him_!"

"I most definitely won't."

"Then you won't get the answers you want so badly."

"Fair enough," Loki shrugged.

"Loki, don't be stupid," Thor sighed. "Just talk to him, for fuck's sake. Maybe he'll understand."

"Maybe, but what then? Am I supposed to wait for another disaster like the one with Sigyn? She understood. She didn't mind. For how long again? Oh, a whole _year_. And what she did then, eh? She left me for a guy who was able to love her back."

"You were both seventeen, Loki."

"So what? _All you need is love_ applies to all age groups."

"Yes, but Stark is old enough to know himself and what he wants."

"You clearly don't know him."

"Loki."

"I will not talk to him, Thor."

"You want to just keep ignoring him? You miss him, brother."

"I missed _you_ , but it didn't stop me from telling you to fuck off every month."

"Because you are probably the most stubborn creature in the whole universe. Stark is the only reason why you speak to me again."

"Because he decided it for me!"

"Yes," Thor nodded. "Precisely."

 

Tony was sitting in his living room and drinking. Funny. He never felt the need to drink with Loki around. Or, well, when he could at least look forward to their next meeting. He didn't drink much when he was hiring the prostitute once a week, and he drank even less during the month when he was Loki's one and only client.

But now, especially after coming out (shit, he shouldn't have read those comments on Facebook, really), he felt a sudden urge to drink himself unconscious.

So apparently, he was a lying piece of shit, a secret gay unwilling to admit it and just wanted to be in the spotlight once again. Oh, great. A few people showed him some support, but most of them hated him. Not surprising, actually, considering how many people thought that bisexuality didn't exist.

He was busy pouring himself another drink when the elevator stopped on his floor and two people walked into the apartment.

"See? I told you. There he is," Pepper said. "And he probably still thoughts it was a brilliant idea."

"I don't, actually," Tony muttered. "I see that you called for reinforcements. Hi, Rhodey."

"Hello, Tony," said Rhodey. "I heard your whore is messing with your head."

"Rhodey!" Pepper growled.

"Oh, yes, whore is a bad, bad word," Rhodey smirked. "What's wrong, Tony?"

"Nothing. Everything's perfectly fine. I fell in love," Tony shrugged. "He didn't. He hates me for it. I haven't seen him for two days and I'm falling apart. As I said, fine."

"I knew it," Pepper mumbled. "I knew that guy was going to cause trouble the moment you started it. I just... _Fuck_!"

"Easy, baby. Easy," Tony said. "We don't want you to have a heart attack or something."

"Oh, well, we don't want _you_ to drink yourself to death."

"I'm not going to," Tony sighed. "Come on, Potts. Give me... Give me a week to lick my wounds the way I want. Then I'll be the good old Tony again. Well, the good old post-Afghanistan-Tony. No, wait, post-poisoning-Tony. Just-got-fucked-by-a-god-of-sex-Tony?"

"This is not _funny_ , Tony."

"Funny-Tony. I can be funny-Tony."

"Mr. Stark? Mr. Odinson is here and he would like to see you," said Jarvis's voice.

"Odinson?" Tony frowned. "You mean _Thor_ Odinson?"

"Yes, sir. He says that if it is too late, then of course-"

"Send him upstairs. Right now. Rhodey, Pepper, would you mind... I don't know, using the private elevator and go to Pepper's flat for a minute?"

"But Tony-"

"That was a rhetorical question, Pepper. Go. Now."

"I won't leave you here-"

"I promise not to die today, right? Well, sort of promise. I hope Thor doesn't want to avenge his little brother or something."

"And what if he does?" Rhodey asked.

"Oh, don't worry, I've got a little something for that..."

 

He was fidgeting with one of the small silver bracelets he needed to call his suit when Thor arrived upstairs.

"Mr. Odinson," the billionaire nodded.

"Mr. Stark," the blonde replied. "Please, call me Thor."

"Well, call me Tony, then," Tony said. "Did you... want something from me?"

"Loki misses you."

"And I miss him," Tony sighed. "Drink?"

"No, thank you," Thor shook his head. "I wanted you to know that I feel grateful to you for reconciling me with my brother. I would like to repay the debt."

"There is no debt. And it's not me you should be talking to about it, but your brother. I am perfectly willing to jump into his arms again, it's him who's ignoring all my calls."

"I know. And I can't tell you why that is."

"Don't worry, I know. Because he's a heartless asshole."

"I can tell you that he is afraid. He's got some bad experience. Very bad."

"Oh, well, as does almost everybody. I, for example, don't trust easily, but I trusted your brother, and look-"

"Trust me, I would like to explain everything to you, but I cannot do it without betraying Loki's trust."

"What are you doing here, then? What _can_ you tell me?"

"Just.. one thing. I guess."

"I'm all ears."

"Google... _aromantic._ "

"Aromantic," Tony repeated. "What the fuck is that-"

"Just do it."

"What are you, a Nike ad?"

"Aromantic. Don't forget."

"Oh, yes. I won't. I guess. Jarvis?"

"On it, sir."

"And read it soon," Thor smiled. "I think that it will answer at least some of your questions."

 

 _"Aromantic, eh? You fucker. Why haven't you told me?_ "

*BEEP*

 _"For the record, I'm not saying that I mind. I don't, I really don't, it would just be nice to be_ informed _in advance, you know?_ "

*BEEP*

 _"Oh, Christ, one of the articles says that aromantics are often asexuals, too. You're not an asexual, are you? Fuck, 'course you're not. If you were, I guess you'd rather try to keep earning money spilling coffee on people. I mean, being a barista, of course. But if you are asexual, I feel really terrible._ "

*BEEP*

 _"Please, just call me and tell me you're not asexual._ "

*BEEP*

 _"I'm pretty sure you said I was hot at least once. Do asexuals think other people hot?_ "

*BEEP*

 _"Christ, I think I might be demiromantic._ "

*BEEP*

 _"Like, it took me so long to fall in love with you, and you're absolutely gorgeous. I have never fallen in love with anyone I didn't know very good. No love at first sight, never, just... Fuck, I'm definitely demiromantic._ "

*BEEP*

 _"So you like... don't fall in love? Never ever? You don't even want to? Shit._ "

*BEEP*

 _"I don't mind, okay? I want you to know that. I'm fine with loving you and you not loving me back, if you at least... like me. Or care for me. Love me in a completely friendly and non-romantic way. If you're fine with it, I'm fine with it. I promise not to run away with some boring romantic. And you know what, I think someone else has told you something like this before, and then they broke that promise, but I won't. Because I love you and I don't ever want to love anyone else. Call me. Please._ "

*BEEP*

 _"Of course, if you're one of those who are just scared and disgusted by love, feel free to ignore the last message._ "

*BEEP*

 _"Just so you know, I wouldn't want you to do all the couply stuff. I'm terrible at it, anyway. I don't remember anniversaries and birthdays, I won't even remember if you are allergic to strawberries. I remember that you have a cat if it helps, but you can't expect me to feed it. I tend to work too much, I won't give you flowers and there will definitely be no candles present during our dinners, just... Just some cuddling and kissing would be nice. But you hate kissing, of course. Forget I ever mentioned kissing. Just call me, okay?_ "

*BEEP*

 _"I just want to kiss you so bad, Lolita..._ "

 

"I'm going to kill you," said Loki and Thor tried to make himself as small as possible, which is a very hard thing for someone so well-built.

"Loki," he gulped.

"I'm going to fucking kill you, Thor."

"But Loki-"

"No. You told him. There is no way he could just _accidentally_ find the word _aromantic_ . Someone must have told him, and there is only one, I repeat _, one_ person on this whole bloody planet, who knows there is a connection between the word and me and... What the hell are you staring at?!"

"You've got a letter from Stark Industries on your coffee table," Thor said.

"No shit, Sherlock."

"Why do you-"

"Oh, it's nothing. Just a job offer. Engineering. My dream. If I want, I can become a student and an assistant of a certain doctor Edward Strong..."

"But that is fantastic, brother! Will you accept?"

"Thor," Loki smirked. "You really are just a giant oaf, aren't you?"


	6. I don't want you to leave

He had no idea why was he doing it. Why did he go right to the Stark Tower, just a day after receiving the letter, why was he accepting the game, why...

"Hello," he said to the receptionist and gave her his most charming smile. "My name is Loki Smith. I am supposed to meet a certain doctor Strong here. Edward Strong?"

"Of course," she said. "He has been expecting you since the morning. Just use the elevator there in the back, the AI will take you straight to his private workshop."

"Thank you," Loki nodded. "Oh, by the way, is Mr. Stark in? I would like to thank him, since it was him who gave me this opportunity. I know him very well, don't worry."

It was such a fun to watch her hesitate at that.

"I'll try to call the penthouse and see what I can do," the receptionist said, a little blush spreading across her cheeks. "I will let you know."

"Thank you so much," Loki grinned and headed for the elevator. When he got in, he winked at the security camera. "Hello, Jarvis."

"Good afternoon, Mr. Smith," the AI replied.

"It's funny that the only way to get to doctor Strong's workshop is Tony Stark's private elevator, eh?" Loki commented. "Funny and not suspicious at all..."

 

"He's _what_?!" Tony shouted.

"On his way upstairs, sir," Jarvis repeated.

"Oh, fuck. Oh, _fuck_ ," Tony moaned. "I didn't... I didn't... Shit, I sound like a broken record, don't I?"

"Indeed, sir."

The private elevator stopped and Tony closed his eyes for a second.

"Okay, I can do this. I can do this..."

He was shaking when he saw Loki entering the workshop. The prostitute (former prostitute?) looked as good as always, in his black jeans and green T-shirt and leather jacket, with his hair all wavy and shiny and...

"Oh, hello," Loki smiled. "Doctor Strong."

"Okay," Tony nodded. "For the record, I fully expected you to realize that."

"Yes, it's not exactly rocket science. Edward is your middle name and Stark means _strong_ in German, so... Yes. I would be very insulted if you thought me so stupid."

"What I didn't expect was... that you would actually come."

"Your receptionist said that _doctor Strong_ had been expecting me since this morning."

"Yeah, but he didn't believe you would... appear."

"If it helps, I didn't believe it, either. Not until I found myself in front of this building and about to go in. So... Do you really want to offer me a job, or was it just a trick to see me, Mr. Stark?"

"Both?" Tony muttered. "I wanted to offer you a job so I could see you. And, well, I told you that I would take care of you in case it didn't work out. Which... it didn't."

"You don't have to take care of me."

"Really? So you... You have gone back to being a whore, or what? Did Amora take you back or are you... going to be walking the streets again?"

"I haven't done anything yet," Loki shrugged. "I saved some money from you. A lot, really. I don't have to think about a job for a few months. And then... I don't know. It's the only thing I can do."

"That's why I'm offering you this chance," Tony sighed. "So you don't have to go back if you don't want to. I will teach you what you need to know, and then I'll give you a job in Stark Industries. Simple. Of course that you will only get the standard wage for your position, but the standard is pretty high in Stark Industries. You'll definitely be able to pay your rent."

"One question. Why?" Loki asked. "Just because you fell in love with me?"

"No. Because I you've got an amazing brain and I think that you could be one of those people who do something _amazing_. I don't want to see it go to waste."

"How can you know that I have an amazing brain?"

"I've known since the first time I met you. I know a genius when I see one. Come _on_ , Loki. It's your dream."

"Under one condition."

"Let me guess," said Tony. "No sex, no kissing, no inappropriate touches, everything strictly professional?"

"Yes," Loki nodded. "Can you do it?"

"I hope."

"If you try to kiss me, just once, I am going to leave."

"All right, I get it."

"Fine."

"Fine," Tony smiled. "It's good to see you again."

"It's good to see you again, too," Loki replied. "So when do we start?"

"How about right now?" Tony grinned. "I've prepared some tests for you, in case you showed up. I need to know what you know, what you understand and what do I need to explain. I should warn you that I am a horrible teacher, so you're gonna have to do lots of reading. Oh, well. Jarvis, the first test for Mr. Smith, please. Loki, you've got as much time as you need. Don't be afraid to make a mistake, you're not supposed to have everything right, okay? I'll be just over there, upgrading my suit. Go on, sit down. Let's see if I was right about that whole genius business."

 

He was right, of course. Loki turned out to be not only a genius, but also extremely diligent. He was such a good student, always doing exactly what Tony told him to, reading all the books, asking just the right questions.

Two weeks and Tony managed not to kiss him, no matter how much he wanted to. He didn't even hug him. He mentally patted himself on the back every evening for that, just before his usual five minutes of crying because he knew that he wouldn't able to do keep going for much longer, and that Loki would leave.

He didn't want him to, Christ. He wanted to keep him forever. Those past two weeks, he lived for Loki's smiles and his laughter and his mischievous green eyes. Maybe it had been a terrible idea to teach Loki. He was falling for him harder and harder every time he saw him.

 _Oh, fuck, oh, fuck, oh, fuck.._.

 

"Doctor Stark," Loki grinned when he entered the workshop.

"Stop it," Tony growled. "I'm telling you for the eighth time, you don't have to call me doctor just because you found out that I've actually _got_ a doctorate."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Stark."

"Better."

"I'm still gonna call you doctor Stark tomorrow morning."

"Yeah. I know," Tony sighed. "Homework?"

"To come up with something entirely crazy and useless."

"Did you?"

"Yes," Loki smiled and sat down. "Tell me, are you familiar with the Norse mythology?"

"You mean apart from the fact that Loki was a god and Freyja was a goddess and there was some Thor, too, and he had a big hammer?"

"Mjölnir. Yes," Loki nodded. "A hammer only Thor was strong enough to lift, it would never miss and it would always come back to him."

"Just a nice and heavy boomerang, got it. Wait. Are you suggesting that you want to..."

"What's my brother's name, Stark?"

"Uhm, Thor? Oh, right. _Thor_."

"Ever since I started dreaming about engineering," Loki smiled, "I've been promising Thor to make such a hammer for him. I was about eight. He was about ten. That explains a lot. I would like to keep that promise."

"Well, I don't know about no one else being able to lift it. We could probably find some way to do it, maybe with a fingerprint lock, but the rest shouldn't be much of a problem."

"Really?" Loki blinked. "Because no matter how hard I think about it, I can't find a way to call the hammer back to his hand."

"That is actually the easiest part," Tony smirked and took a silver bracelet from his desk. When he then extended his arm, a glove from the Iron Man suit came flying to him and assembled itself around his hand. "The suit locks on the signal from the bracelet. I've recently upgraded it to respond to neural impulses rather than voice commands. All I have to do to call the suit is think about it. I am working on chips which I could implant under my skin, so the bracelets won't be needed at all. Like I said. Calling a hammer to your hand is easy-peasy."

"You will help me with it, then?"

"Yeah, 'course. A toy based on Norse mythology. That's what I call proper crazy. Well done."

"Thank you."

"But I will just _help._ You're gonna have to try and do what you can yourself."

"Okay. So... Jarvis? Could you open a new project for me, please?"

"Of course, Mr. Smith."

 

 

It took Loki a week to design the hammer just right. By the end of the week, Tony was about to throw himself out of the nearest window. Loki was sexy, right. He'd always been. But when he was solving a problem, when he was thinking, when his face was lit by the hologrammatic blueprints, he was just too hot.

Yeah, Tony was definitely into intelligence. So what?

He didn't know how he survived the _next_ week when Loki was getting the hammer together. Because of course that Tony insisted that Loki should do it himself instead of just asking Jarvis to do it for him. It was his first invention, after all. Tony remembered all too well that amazing feeling when he built his first robot with his own hands...

Tony knew he was about to go crazy. And he knew he would have to send Loki to some other Stark Industries facility, give him a job he had promised him, because if he didn't, there was a huge chance that he would just jump his bones. The way Loki kept hissing at the hammer like it personally offended him (while all it did was that it just, well, didn't cooperate the way Loki wanted it to) was almost incredibly cute.

It was a relief when Loki was done and everything they needed to do was to test the damn thing. So Tony took Loki up to his penthouse and onto his large terrace. There was enough space there, almost nothing to accidentally hit, no innocent citizens... (Of course that there were many innocent citizens on the street below, but nothing could happen to them. Tony was sure the hammer was going to work just fine.)

"Okay," he said to Loki, who was nervously holding the hammer. "Throw it as hard as you can, then think about it going back, and it will."

"Are you sure, Stark?"

"Absolutely," Tony nodded. "Go for it, Lolita, it's all yours."

"All right," Loki grinned and lifted the hammer. "Beware of the _mighty Loki_!"

He threw the hammer and the added propulsion made it fly nice and steady and _up_...

"Oh, wow," Tony laughed. "Okay, now back, we don't want to crash it to the Empire State Building."

Loki smiled and extended his arm.

"Fine. Back... back... back..."

The hammer turned around and headed straight to them.

Loki opened his palm, prepared to catch it. The hammer was getting closer and closer...

He was too slow. The hammer flew straight past them. They heard the sound of shattering glass before they managed to turn around. When they did, it was only to see the hammer harmlessly fall to the floor in the middle of the living room.

There was a moment of silence.

"You might need some practice," Tony then said.

"It works," Loki whispered.

"I see that."

"You don't get it. It works. I built this and... And it _works_."

"Yes. It does," Tony nodded. "You owe me a new window, by the way."

That made Loki burst into little giggles, which soon grew into a full laughter. Tony just watched him for a few seconds, watched the sparkle in Loki's eyes... And then he started to laugh too. But not out of amusement like Loki, but out of pure joy of seeing Loki so happy.

Just as their laughter was slowly starting to die, it all became too much for Tony. He just wasn't able to stop himself from grabbing the back of Loki's neck and pressing their lips together.

 _Stop it!_ his brain immediately screamed. _Stop it before it's too late, stop it now and he might forgive you, just stop it_!

It stopped screaming when Loki wrapped his arms around Tony's torso and lightly moaned. That moment, the inventor's brain went completely quiet.

The kiss grew a lot wilder quickly. Their tongues were fighting for dominance. Tony felt himself being pulled towards the glass door leading back to the penthouse and he was happy to follow Loki's lead, especially when he felt Loki's long fingers tugging at the hem of his T-shirt and slipping underneath it just as they got inside Tony's living room.

None of them heard a ding of an elevator, and only Loki noticed the soft clicking of stiletto heels. But both of them heard Pepper's voice. It was hard not to hear that.

"What the hell is going on here?! I swear, sometimes I don't know if I'm a CEO or a babysitter, but God help me... Oh."

Tony felt the tears prick in his eyes as he hugged Loki tight, knowing very well that the spell had been broken, that Loki will realize what he had done and leave.

"This might not be the best time, Pepper," the billionaire mumbled.

"That's right," said Loki. "Me and Mr. Stark have some things to discuss."

"Yeah. I guess we do."

"I mean after I'm done fucking him."

Tony buried his fingers into Loki's long, soft hair and tugged.

"You mean that?" he gasped.

"Yes, I do," Loki whispered into his ear, then gave it a little bite. "Pepper? You might want to leave."

"Don't think we're done," she said. "Someone will have to pay for that window."

"Yes, and that someone will be me, as we know," said Tony, his hands shaking, his face buried in the crook of Loki's neck. "I'll give you a call when we're done here. Bye, baby."

"Oh, fine," Pepper sighed. "You know that you are not supposed to fuck your employees, right?"

"Absolutely."

"Just checking," she smirked and turned around. "Have fun. And remember, I don't want to see any complaints about harassment on my desk!"

They waited until she was gone. Tony was waiting for Loki to change his mind, but then he felt soft lips lightly kissing his neck.

"Loki," he croaked. "Are you..."

"Shush."

"But I..."

"I said _shush_ , Stark."

Their lips crashed together again, just as eager as before Pepper came. Tony moaned. Their way to the bedroom was fairly quick, just as getting rid of all their clothes.

Very soon, Tony was once again lying on his back with Loki's fingers buried deep in his ass, pressing into his prostate. He was moaning, on the verge of screaming, his eyes rolling in the back of his head, _too good, way too good_...

He wasn't even embarrassed when he, once again, came just from Loki's fingers in his ass. Loki's fingers were magical, and he hadn't had sex for more than a month. No, nothing to be embarrassed about.

He just felt extremely grateful. And so he, right after he fell back from his pink orgasm cloud, rolled Loki over on his back and swallowed his cock.

Loki whined and Tony felt his hips thrusting up. He just relaxed his throat and let Loki fuck his mouth.

He could definitely get used to this.

 

They were lying in Tony's bed, side by side, looking into each other's eyes. Loki's fingers were absentmindedly circling Tony's arc reactor and Tony's were playing with Loki's long hair. With their post-orgasmic haze long since gone, the only thing left was Tony's fear that Loki would change his mind and walk away.

"I love you," he heard himself whispering probably the only thing that could make the whole situation even worse.

"I care for you," Loki said, quietly, and leaned in to kiss Tony on the lips.

"Do you?"

"Mh-hm..."

"Sure?"

"Absolutely sure, Anthony."

"I don't want you to leave," Tony murmured. "Please, don't leave."

"I'm not going to. Well, I am, obviously, as I'm gonna need to go home, but... I won't _leave_ you."

"Fine. Fine..."

"But Anthony? I am not going to love you. You need to be aware of that, and you need to be absolutely sure that this is what you want."

"I know. I am sure," Tony nodded. "As long as you... love me in that special way of yours, I'm fine."

"Good," Loki smiled.

"Was I right?" Tony asked. "Someone promised you to stay with you and then left you for someone who loved them back?"

"Did Thor tell you?"

"He told me you've got some bad experience, nothing more."

"All right. Yes, that is exactly what happened."

"It won't happen with me, I swear."

"Do you really think you are demiromantic, Anthony?"

"I'm pretty sure I am," Tony grinned. "It's a nice label. Kind of. Means I definitely won't leave you for a chick I just met."

"Of course that you won't. I would hurl Mjölnir right at your head."

"Remind me to upgrade it to respond only to Thor's fingerprints, ASAP," Tony laughed, only to be silenced by another kiss pressed against his lips.

"You are an idiot, Anthony," Loki sighed. "But you are my idiot."

"I thought you didn't like kissing," Tony commented.

"Quite the opposite. I love it. Sure, it doesn't give me that... thrill romantic people feel, but I enjoy the closeness, the intimacy... I love kissing, and I love touching, and... Yes, I love your fingers in my hair, _yesss_... I like it so much it makes me feel almost vulnerable. So I never do it with people I don't... love in that special way of mine."

"You kissed me when you were nineteen."

"That was... before I decided to stop doing it. Which was when I became a whore."

"Oh. I see," Tony smiled. "But you don't mind kissing _me_ , then?"

"I love kissing you," Loki replied. "It's one of my favorite things to do. Even though your beard is terribly scratchy."

"Excuse me? Don't you dare insulting my beard, it's not my fault that you are not able to grow any!"

"I could, if you wanted me to."

"Don't you dare, you little whore. I like you just the way you are."

"Really? And I thought I could look so _good_ with a beard..."

Another kiss, much longer and slower.

"Loki?"

"Yes?"

"I want you to become my assistant. In the workshop, I mean. My science partner. And no, it's not because I want you to bend me over the worktable."

"Isn't it?"

"Maybe a little bit. But I want that brain of yours somewhere near me. You know how I said you could be one of the people who create something amazing? Well, you and me, _together_... Imagine that."

"We've managed to invent a flying hammer to smash your windows with."

"Come on, Loki. We can do something great, we can create anything you want. What do you want, Loki? What did you imagine yourself doing when you wanted to be an engineer?"

"I don't know. I can't remember," Loki murmured and covered Tony's reactor with his palm. "We'll think of something."

"We," Tony grinned. "So you will stay with me, right?"

"I don't think I've got a choice, Anthony."

"Right," the billionaire nodded. "Will you stay with me tonight?"

"I can't. Freyja's angry at me for spending so much time outside, she was used to me being at home most of the time. I should go, soon. It takes me almost an hour to get home, so..."

"A word of advice, don't go on if you don't want me to invite you to live in the tower."

"Oh, I think it's a bit early for-"

"There are some empty flats below the penthouse, I think I've told you once. At least... three floors? Pepper occupies one of those flats. No idea how _that_ happened, she just... moved from Malibu and invited herself to my place. Well, almost my place. Even though we weren't together anymore. She said she moved only because I had asked her to, so it's only fair if I give her a flat. So you can have one of them, too. They're pretty nice, not as big as the penthouse, but they're accessible by the private elevator and you'd be close to me if you ever felt lonely at night, and it would take you about a minute to get to work, not an hour, there would be no rent, of course, and of course that cats are allowed, especially cute cats like the one that owns you..."

"Will you shut up if I say yes?"

"Maybe? With me, you can never be sure. But I will understand if you want to stay in your own flat, of course."

"I would have the access to your workshop. I could work with you whenever I'd like."

"And to my bedroom. You could fuck me whenever you'd like."

"Fine. I say yes."

"Yes!" Tony grinned. "But today, you really need to go home, right?"

"I'm afraid so."

"Can I come with you?"

Loki smiled and kissed Tony's forehead.

"Oh, yes, please."

 

"What's taking you so long, doctor Stark?" Loki laughed while climbing the stairs to his flat. "Are you getting old?"

"Oh, shut up, you little bitch," Tony gasped for breath. "It's not my fault that you're younger. Besides, you're not dragging a stupid giant hammer upstairs!"

"It's not _that_ big. And remember, _you_ were the one who made a joke about me having Mjölnir in my... Oh damn."

" _Oh damn_ what?" Tony frowned. "Please, tell me it's not _oh damn, I forgot my keys at your_... Oh damn."

Thor was standing in front of Loki's door, but he wasn't the only one. By his side, there was an elegant blond woman, bearing a striking resemblance to Thor himself. It had to be, it just _had_ to be...

"Mother," Loki whispered. "What are you..."

"Let's just say that your father shouldn't let his blackmail material lie all around his desk _._ He didn't realize, of course, who was the young man with Tony Stark, he thought it was just a random prostitute, but I... Oh, Loki."

Suddenly, Loki found himself in his mother's tight embrace. He wasn't able to do anything else than hug her back, even tighter than she was hugging him.

"Mother..."

"Thor told me everything, but don't you dare to yell at him. I made him tell me, you understand? Oh, Loki, my dear little Loki..."

"We should... We should go inside," Loki managed to say. "If you want to talk, I mean."

"Yes. Of course," she smiled and let him go, then turned her head to the nervously smiling Tony. "Mr. Stark."

"Uhm, hi. Hi, Mrs..."

"Call me Frigga. Please," she smiled.

Loki unlocked the door and tried very hard to ignore Thor's questioning gaze. He knew he would have to explain everything, and soon, but...

The moment he opened the door, his cat ran outside, took a look around and, immediately after spotting him, headed straight to Tony.

"Freyja!" the inventor grinned. "Oh, hello, girl. My dear, haven't you gained a little weight?"

"Go inside, mother, please. Thor," said Loki and took a few steps to Tony. "Anthony?"

"Yeah, don't worry, I get it. I'll leave," Tony smiled. "Leave you alone with mum. I mean... If you want me to."

"If you don't mind..."

"I don't, it's fine, just call me-"

"I would prefer it if you stayed. Please? I think I am going to need a hug later. And maybe a long kiss or two."

"Take the hammer," Tony smiled and shoved it to Loki's hand. "I'm gonna take the cat."

"It's my cat."

"I want to cuddle her a little. I missed her. And I missed you. But I have already cuddled with you. So for the next few minutes, she's my cat, too. Go. Your mum's waiting."

"Bossy, aren't you?"

"Well, I _am_ your boss. Deal with it, babe."

 

"Mhm... Boss?"

"Oh, for fuck's sake."

" _Boss_?"

"I'm trying to sleep here, babe."

"Is this how you talk to all your employees?"

"Nope, just the ones I fuck. Five... well, maybe ten, tops."

"Oh. That's okay, then."

"I was kidding, you know? I'm not your boss. I'm your... How did you explain it to your mum? _Sort-of-boyfriend_?"

"Boss is shorter."

"Lolita, don't make me want to strangle you."

"You can't strangle me when you're the little spoon."

"Damn."

" _B_ _oss_..."

"Okay, call me boss. Call me whatever you like. I'm just glad you're okay. I was afraid you'll be all sad and shaken again."

"No, I am... I am happy. Content. I was so fucking afraid that mother will hate me when she finds out about me being a prostitute..."

"She loves you, no matter what. Your mum is amazing, babe."

"Yes. I know."

"And you're just like her. It doesn't matter that she's not your biological mum, you two are so much alike..."

"Yes. Maybe we are."

"Mhm... Lolita?"

"I hate that nickname, by the way."

"I love you."

"I know. My Anthony..."

"By the way, I expect you to move to the tower ASAP."

"Anything for my boss."

"Loki!"

"Sort-of-boyfriend."

"Better."

"Client?"

"Not anymore, babe."

"You were my best client, you know?"

"Hush. Be a good babe and go to sleep. Or I'm gonna have to sing you a lullaby."

"Oh, please, do. You've got such a beautiful voice..."

"You _will_ go to sleep if I do? You promise?"

"I promise."

"Fine. Oh, Lolita, life with you is gonna be a hard one, ain't it?"

"My darling, you have no idea..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, that's it. Thank you all very much for reading, and I hope that you enjoyed the story! :)


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